Caroline Pham, one of the Republican commissioners on the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, will take over the agency on an interim basis, according to two people familiar with the decision, as President Donald Trump’s administration shifts US policy toward a friendlier relationship with digital. properties.
The CFTC stands to be a top federal watchdog for crypto, and Pham takes over as acting chair at a point of great potential transition for the agency. Much of the legislature’s early efforts to establish a digital assets roadmap envisioned the CFTC taking over regulation of crypto spot markets for widely traded tokens like bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum’s ether (ETH). The previous bills are expected to be the foundation of crypto work in the new Congress.
The five-member commission voted to elevate Pham, the people said. The agency usually defers such selection to the wishes of the incoming majority party leadership.
A CFTC spokesman and a staffer for Pham declined to comment on the decision, which has not yet been officially announced by the agency.
Pham will lead the CFTC until Trump nominates and the Senate confirms a permanent pick. It is not clear if he will also be the frontrunner for the full chairmanship.
During his time at the agency, he spent a lot of time directing the Global Markets Advisory Committee that he led to evaluate potential approaches to managing digital assets.
Outgoing CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam previously announced he would step down from the commission on inauguration day, joining Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler, who also said he would resign at noon ET, when Trump is sworn in.
