Kristin Johnson to leave CFTC next week

The outgoing commissioner of the US CFTC, Kristin Johnson, said that she would leave the regulator on September 3, after having said earlier this year that she would leave the agency before 2026 after finishing her mandate.

Johnson said in a statement on Tuesday that she considered a “honor and a privilege” to work as a financial market regulator and feels “inspired to dig and do more” while she is looking for “new ways of being at the service of customers, markets and our nation”.

She quoted her work offering initiatives to assess cyberrencies and the integration of artificial intelligence in the financial markets as high points of her time with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Johnson is the only CFTC democratic commissioner. She joined in March 2022 after being appointed by former American president Joe Biden.

Its exit will leave the CFTC with an almost empty panel of commissioners, which could slow its work in the regulation of the cryptography market. The only interim president Caroline Pham will remain, who will also leave once Brian Quintenz, the choice of President Donald Trump to direct the regulator, is confirmed.

CFTC should focus on growth, consumer protection

In the future, Johnson, CFTC staff should be said to receive the support and investments necessary to succeed, in particular when such significant changes made to the markets and the structure of the market are envisaged. “

It also reiterated that the crypto must operate in a framework of responsibility and surveillance, and that the Commission can prioritize growth while protecting market stability and customers against fraud.

“Sustainable growth depends, or better indicated, is built on a regulatory framework which guarantees that the markets remain resilient in the face of volatility, uncertainty and stress,” she said.

“The objectives of market growth and integrity do not exclude each other. There is no real conflict between making the growth potential advance and preserving the stability or integrity of the market. ”

Vacancies could slow down regulatory work

In addition to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the CFTC has dealt with specific regulatory and application problems linked to the crypto. Congress Republicans have also tried to adopt laws, which gives the CFTC greater surveillance in the sector.

The first CFTC “Sprint CFTC” declaration on August 1 said it would work in close collaboration with the SEC to create a regulatory process and use “their existing authorities to provide full regulatory clarity”.

A commissioner can always act with the power to advance the rules and supervise all activities under the law on the exchange of goods.

The outgoing commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero declared in May that the exodus of the best brass from the agency was “not an excellent situation” for cryptographic regulations because it leaves a less diverse pool of opinions.

The former president of the CFTC, Rostin Behnam, resigned on January 20, when the Trump administration took over, while Summer Mersinger and Goldsmith Romero resigned in May.

In relation: The United States must adopt regulations or risk loss of cryptographic race – Wyoming Symposium

Five commissioners are supposed to invent the CFTC, and not more than three can come from the same political party.

Quintenz confirmation always in limbo

Trump’s choice for the president of the CFTC, Brian Quintenz, remains in the limbo after the White House intervened to postpone a vote in the Senate on his appointment at the end of July.

Several crypto plea groups have called for the confirmation of Quintenz, arguing that a permanent chair was essential for the regulator of raw materials to reach its crypto objectives.