CFTC margin pilot launches without Ripple’s XRP
The post CFTC margin pilot launches without Ripple’s XRP appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
The United States has signaled a clear distinction between crypto assets suitable for trading and those best suited for use as collateral in the derivatives markets. On Dec 8, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) authorized Futures Commission Merchants (FCMs) to accept Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDC as eligible margin under a digital assets pilot program. The move brings these tokens into the operational framework used for futures and swaps clearing, placing them alongside more traditional forms of performance bond, like Treasury Bills and gold, subject to risk-based adjustments. Acting Chair Caroline Pham described the initiative as part of an effort to ensure that crypto-linked leverage sits within US bankruptcy protections, segregation rules, and continuous monitoring, rather than in offshore environments. According to her: “This imperative has never been more important given recent customer losses on non-US crypto exchanges.” The Safe Harbor strategy The pilot aims to give institutional traders the option to collateralize positions with assets cleared under US oversight, rather than relying on liquidation engines operated by offshore exchanges. Under the new regime, BTC, ETH, and USDC can be posted as margin, subject to frequent reporting, custody requirements, and valuation “haircuts” designed to account for volatility and operational risk. For policymakers, the approach is intended to create a domestic alternative to high-volume offshore trading venues while retaining the CFTC’s longstanding safeguards for leveraged derivatives activity. The program also establishes a framework for assessing tokenized collateral in practice, giving regulators visibility into how digital assets perform within a system built for continuous margin calls and intraday risk checks. Heath Tarbert, President of Circle, said: “Deploying prudentially supervised payment stablecoins across CFTC-regulated markets protects customers, reduces settlement frictions, supports 24/7 risk reduction, and advances US dollar leadership through global regulatory interoperability. Enabling near-real-time margin settlement will also mitigate settlement-failure and liquidity-squeeze…
