Ethereum Statements From Behnam, Chairman of the CFTC, Who Sued Binance!

Rostin Behnam, Chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), at a recent budget session Ethereum (ETH) reiterated his belief that it is a commodity.

CFTC Chairman Says Ethereum Is A Commodity And Should Be Regulated By Themselves

This announcement comes after the CFTC’s latest attempt against Binance, in which the agency claims that various tokens, including ETH, are commodities that Binance illegally trades.

In his statement, Behnam said the following about ETH:

“I believe they are a commodity. As they are traded on CFTC exchanges, we have a regulatory relationship with the derivatives market and this product as well as the underlying market.”

Behnam’s claim seems to go against the view of his Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) counterpart, Gary Gensler, who argues that proof-of-stake tokens, including Ethereum, are securities that must be registered and regulated by the SEC.

Behnam’s belief that Ethereum is a commodity is driving the CFTC’s lawsuit against Binance and could lead to regulatory scrutiny of trading on other platforms. Although previously viewed as more crypto-friendly than the SEC, the CFTC has taken several enforcement actions against crypto companies in recent years.

Behnam was also asked if he still hopes to leave space for crypto innovation in the US.

“This should definitely be a cause for concern,” Behnam said in response. “Europe has implemented a fairly comprehensive regime that will be implemented over the next few years,” he said, adding that the United States must “take steps forward.”

“We don’t want to rush it,” he said, adding that efforts must be “cautious and deliberate.”

But Behnam’s comments on Tuesday seem to contradict his own words, when he said at an event at Princeton University in November 2021 that Bitcoin is the only cryptocurrency that can be viewed as a commodity.

*Not investment advice.