CFTC staff details how crypto firms can use digital assets as derivatives collateral in new FAQ

Staff at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Friday published a set of frequently asked questions spelling out the operational details of how futures commission merchants and clearinghouses should handle crypto assets used as collateral in derivatives markets.

The FAQ, issued jointly by the CFTC’s Market Participants Division and Division of Clearing and Risk, addresses questions that arose following two staff letters issued in Dec. 2025. Those letters, one on tokenized collateral and another providing a no-action position on digital assets accepted as margin, formed the backbone of a digital assets pilot program launched by former Acting Chair Caroline Pham that allowed bitcoin, ether and USDC to be posted as collateral in derivatives markets.

Among the most notable clarifications: the CFTC is explicitly harmonizing its capital charge framework with the SEC’s. Futures Commission Merchants (FCMs) holding proprietary positions in bitcoin or ether should apply a minimum 20% capital charge, while payment stablecoins get a 2% charge.

The FAQ states the divisions consider interagency alignment on these haircuts to be important, directly referencing the SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets FAQ from Feb., which established matching haircut rates for broker-dealers. A haircut is typically a percentage applied to an asset when it is being used as collateral.

That coordination echoes a broader pattern. The SEC and CFTC signed a memorandum of understanding on Mar. 11 to formalize their coordination on crypto policy, and CFTC Chair Michael Selig said earlier this month that the two agencies are working on a joint crypto asset taxonomy.

The FAQ also draws a sharp line around what FCMs can and cannot do with crypto in segregated customer accounts. FCMs may deposit their own payment stablecoins as residual interest, with a 2% capital charge, but they cannot deposit other crypto assets like bitcoin or ether for that purpose. Likewise, FCMs cannot invest customer funds in payment stablecoins; the existing list of permitted investments under Commission Regulation 1.25 remains unchanged.

For uncleared swaps, the FAQ is similarly restrictive. Swap dealers may not use crypto assets, including stablecoins, as margin collateral. The one exception: tokenized versions of assets already on the eligible collateral list, provided they carry the same legal and economic rights as the traditional form of the asset.

Derivatives clearing organizations, on the other hand, can accept crypto as initial margin for cleared transactions as long as the assets meet existing requirements around credit, market and liquidity risk. DCOs are responsible for setting their own haircuts, subject to monthly review and stress testing.

FCMs looking to rely on the no-action letter must first file a notice through the CFTC’s WinJammer electronic filing system. They then face an initial three-month period where they can only accept payment stablecoins, bitcoin and ether from customers; must report any significant operational or cybersecurity issues; and must file weekly reports on crypto holdings across all customer account classes. After the three-month window, those restrictions fall away and FCMs can expand to other crypto assets.

The FAQ also establishes a two-phase definition of “payment stablecoin.” Before the GENIUS Act takes effect, a payment stablecoin must be USD-denominated, issued by a state-regulated money transmitter, state-regulated trust company or national trust bank, maintain reserves in cash or U.S. Treasuries, and publish monthly reserve attestations. Once the GENIUS Act is in effect, the definition transitions to the law’s own framework for qualifying issuers.

The no-action position underlying these rules, Staff Letter 26-05, originated from a Dec. 2025 request involving Coinbase Financial Markets, which had been working with clearinghouse Nodal Clear to make USDC accepted as collateral for U.S. futures trading.

The FAQ “does not necessarily represent the views of the Commission or of any other division or office of the Commission,” and does not create enforceable rights or new binding rules. But for an industry that has spent years waiting for regulators to specify exactly how crypto fits into existing derivatives infrastructure, the 11-question document offers something closer to a playbook.