Rearranging of the American Innovative Financial Discourse: Who has obtained the CFTC's table qualification?

Original Title: "Who is at the CFTC's Table? A Redistribution of Discourse Power in American Innovative Finance"

Written by: KarenZ, Foresight News

On February 12, 2026, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) officially released announcement No. 9182-26, revealing the members of the Innovation Advisory Committee (IAC).

If you think this is just a routine list of regulatory "think tank" members, you are very much mistaken.

This list, which brings together traditional financial giants, leading platforms in the crypto industry, DeFi infrastructure providers, top venture capital institutions, and academic representatives, is not simply a formation of an advisory group; it is a crucial step in CFTC's establishment of a cooperative framework for the regulation of innovative financial markets based on the Federal Advisory Committee Act.

The Innovation Advisory Committee (IAC), spearheaded by CFTC Chairman Michael S. Selig, is a successor to the Technology Advisory Committee (TAC) and clearly conveys a message from its original intent to its final composition: the U.S. regulatory body is actively embracing innovation in cryptocurrency and financial technology, shifting from "reactive regulation" to "cooperative governance."

Full Cast: A Grand Slam from Exchanges, DeFi to Traditional Finance

Unlike previous occasions where regulatory bodies invited a couple of crypto representatives to "dress up the facade," this time the CFTC's IAC committee list can be called an "all-star lineup," covering 35 members from traditional financial giants, crypto trading platforms, DeFi protocols, blockchain infrastructure, investment institutions, and academic representatives.

1. CEX

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong
Kraken Co-CEO Arjun Sethi
Gemini CEO Tyler Winklevoss
Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek
Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev
Blockchain.com CEO Peter Smith
Bullish CEO Tom Farley
Bitnomial CEO Luke Hoersten

2. Prediction Markets

Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan
Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour
FanDuel President Christian Genetski
DraftKings CEO Jason Robins

3. DeFi and Public Chain Foundation

Uniswap Labs CEO Hayden Adams
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse
Solana Labs CEO Anatoly Yakovenko
Chainlink Labs CEO Sergey Nazarov
Etherealize CEO Vivek Raman from Ethereum promotion and product startups

4. Top Crypto Venture Capital

a16z crypto Managing Partner Chris Dixon
Paradigm Managing Partner Alana Palmedo
Framework Ventures Co-Founder Vance Spencer

5. Digital Asset Custody and Asset Management

Anchorage Digital CEO Nathan McCauley
Grayscale CEO Peter Mintzberg

6. Traditional Finance and Clearing, Trading Institutions

Options Clearing Corporation CEO Andrej Bolkovic
Derivatives Exchange and Clearinghouse Rothera Markets CEO Thomas Chippas
Cboe Global Markets CEO Craig Donohue
CME Group CEO Terry Duffy
Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman
President and CEO of the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation Frank LaSalla
ISDA CEO Scott D. O’Malia
LSEG CEO David Schwimmer
ICE CEO Jeff Sprecher
Trading Company DRW CEO Don Wilson

7. Academic and Compliance Representatives

Professor Harry Crane, Professor Carla Reyes

8. Others

FIA CEO Walt Lukken

The CFTC clearly states that the core responsibility of the IAC is to provide professional advice on cutting-edge innovations in derivatives and commodity markets, focusing on the reconstruction of markets due to technologies such as AI and blockchain, and helping regulators develop "adaptive rules" to maintain the effectiveness of financial regulation.

Regulatory Logic: Top-Level Collaboration

The IAC is not a temporary body but a long-term design by the CFTC aimed at the golden age of the U.S. financial market, providing professional advice for technological innovations in financial markets.

According to announcement No. 9167-26 issued by the CFTC on January 12 of this year, Michael S. Selig had clearly defined the positioning of the IAC a month earlier:

Establishment Background: Replacing the original Technology Advisory Committee: This renaming is not a mere wordplay. Under the leadership of Michael S. Selig, the CFTC has evidently recognized that merely discussing blockchain technology and AI has become outdated; what we need to discuss now are entirely new financial business models spawned by technology.
Core Work: The IAC focuses on the intersection of finance and technology (such as blockchain, digital assets, AI, etc.), balancing perspectives from the financial industry, regulatory agencies, fintech providers, academic institutions, etc., to help the CFTC understand the impact of technological innovation and to guide the application of new technologies in financial markets. It solely provides consultation and suggestions, without any actual decision-making power.
Operational Details: The CFTC provides support, with an annual operational cost of about $170,000, and members do not receive compensation for their work; additionally, the CFTC will appoint a dedicated federal official to oversee meetings, compliance, training, and all related matters; the committee will meet at least once a year, and subcommittees can meet as needed.

This signifies a break from the past, where the industry and regulators would "dialogue from a distance." DeFi representatives, CEXs, traditional exchanges, clearinghouses, and venture capitalists now "sit at the same table," allowing the CFTC to obtain frontline market consultations and suggestions directly, preventing rule-making from disconnecting from reality.

What Does This Mean for Web3?

The establishment of the IAC list has at least the following clear impacts on the crypto industry:

1. The "Legalization" of Prediction Markets Crowned

The most striking inclusion in the IAC list is the selection of Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan and Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour.

After a long tug-of-war over whether "election predictions" constitute gambling, the CFTC’s move essentially acknowledges the financial status of prediction markets as "event contracts." More interestingly, the list also features the Presidents of DraftKings and FanDuel—this indicates that the boundaries between sports betting, financial derivatives, and on-chain prediction markets are becoming blurred.

This shift is particularly evident in the regulation of prediction markets. In February 2026, the CFTC announced the withdrawal of the proposed rules for "event contracts" published in 2024. At that time, CFTC Chairman Michael S. Selig stated bluntly: "The 2024 event contract proposal reflects the reckless regulation of the previous administration's complete ban on political contracts before the 2024 presidential election." The CFTC will push for the formulation of new rules based on a rational interpretation of the Commodity Exchange Act that aligns with Congressional intent and promotes responsible innovation in the derivatives market.

2. DeFi and Public Chains Gain Official "Formal Seats"

The inclusion of projects like Uniswap, Solana, Chainlink, and Etheralize CEO Vivek Raman signifies not only a recognition of the status of DeFi infrastructure but also means that the CFTC is acknowledging that code is indeed market structure from the technical foundation. The debate over whether "DeFi front-end needs licensing" may shift to a more pragmatic discussion of "how protocol layers comply."

3. Compliance "Bonuses" for Leading Platforms Further Solidified

The inclusion of institutions like Coinbase, Kraken, and Gemini, which have long been engaged in U.S. compliance, into the core advisory layer means that future CFTC rule-making will be closer to the actual operational logic of these platforms, and the competitive advantage of compliant players will continue to magnify.

Such platforms, through deep engagement with regulators, will form significant advantages in areas such as obtaining licenses and business innovation, further exacerbating the Matthew Effect in the industry and pressuring smaller platforms to expedite their compliance efforts, promoting overall compliance upgrades in the crypto industry.

Conclusion

The core regulatory area of the CFTC is the derivatives and commodities market, and innovations such as crypto derivatives, digital asset futures, blockchain clearing and settlement, and prediction markets are becoming the central development directions in this field.

The establishment of the IAC represents a regulatory paradigm upgrade promoted by the CFTC, transitioning towards "forward-looking rule design in the early stages of innovation" and "adaptability-based regulation grounded in market realities."

The essence of this upgrade is a re-recognition of the symbiotic relationship between regulation and innovation: fintech innovation is not the opposite of regulation but the core driving force behind the modernization of financial markets, and the core role of regulation is not to hinder innovation but to delineate boundaries and prevent risks, allowing innovation to realize value within a compliant framework.

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