Crypto Regulator CFTC Chairman Takes Funding Cuts “Incredibly Personally”

The United States’ Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has received a $1 million USD budget cut. The announcement has come following the CFTC Chairman, Christopher Giancarlo requested an increase in the regulator’s budget of 12 percent.

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CFTC Request For Funding Increase Answered With Budget Cut

It has been reported that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has received a $1 million dollar cut to its approximately $250 million budget. The agency appears to have taken significant offense to the funding cut – as the CFTC had originally requested a 12 percent increase to its funding, in which it hoped to secure $281.5 million in financial resources.

Congress’ decision to roll-back the regulator’s funding has been taken as a great offense by the institution. Erica Elliott Richardson, a spokeswoman for the agency, stated that the institution’s chairman, Christopher Giancarlo, “takes this budget decrease incredibly personally, and is currently meeting with our finance team to figure out a path forward for the agency.”

“We are absolutely astounded by the decrease in the CFTC’s budget,” Mrs. Richardson added.

SEC Funding Bolstered in Spite of CFTC Cuts

In the recent months, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has increasingly sought position itself as a major regulatory force with the United States’ emerging cryptocurrency industry. The respective chairmen from the CFTC and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), testified to a Senate Banking Committee regarding their perceptions of the risks and challenges posed by cryptocurrencies last month.

Despite the reduction of the CFTC’s funding, the United States Congress has granted the SEC a budget of $1.7 billion – roughly 3% more than was requested by the agency.

Brett Redfearn, the head of the SEC’s trading and markets division, recently advocated for an extension of the legislative apparatus surrounding the stock market – describing the crypto markets as currently exhibiting qualities of the “Wild West.” Mr. Redfearn stated, “I’m not sure all of the rules would translate over, but there are certainly principles that exist in that space that we have to then apply in some respect to what’s happening with crypto-asset trading.”

What is your response to the CFTC’s funding cut? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

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