FTX chief welcomes more regulation as CFTC weighs its crypto derivatives proposal

By Lisa Pauline Mattackal

(Reuters) – Crypto exchange FTX’s move to seek regulatory approval for direct trading in cryptocurrency derivatives will leave the door open for more oversight of the business in the United States, the company’s chief executive officer said.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is currently considering an application from FTX US to offer “non-intermediated” margin trades for cryptocurrency derivatives, meaning the exchange would bypass the financial companies that currently facilitate such trades.

“There has been missing federal oversight of (crypto) exchanges in the U.S., we see this as a way to bring our platform under a regulatory agency,” FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried said on Wednesday.

Clearing houses including the CME Group say they will oppose FTX’s proposal.

Regulators globally have struggled with how best to oversee skyrocketing growth in crypto markets. The CFTC has scheduled a public roundtable to discuss direct trading on May 25.

FTX is open to discussing and implementing additional protective measures, Bankman-Fried said.

The company is the world’s fifth-largest cryptocurrency derivatives exchange by trading volume, as per CoinMarketCap, and was recently valued at $32 billion.

Separately, the company announced on Thursday it would donate up to $1 billion for causes including climate-change mitigation and pandemic preparation.

“We are approaching donations of $100 million this year, ultimately the amount will depend on how well we do as a company,” Bankman-Fried said, adding the company is pushing for more sustainable methods of crypto mining and blockchain scaling.

(Reporting by Lisa Pauline Mattackal in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva)