CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam Confident in Building Crypto Regulatory Framework Within 12 Months if FIT Act Passes

According to CoinDesk, Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Rostin Behnam expressed confidence in his agency's ability to build a regulatory framework for the crypto industry within 12 months if Congress passes the Financial Innovation and Technology Act for the 21st Century (FIT Act). During an annual appearance before the House Agriculture Committee, Behnam reiterated his call for legislation addressing regulators' jurisdictions in the crypto sector and emphasized the need to fill the gap in crypto regulation, particularly around bitcoin (BTC). Behnam was responding to questions about the FIT Act, a bill that passed through the House Agriculture and Financial Services Committees last year but never made it to a floor vote. The hearing also focused on the CFTC's budget requests for the upcoming fiscal year, with Behnam stating that the agency needed more certainty around its budget. When asked to explain how bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies were commodities, Behnam said the classification of bitcoin as a commodity is mostly used in the counter-negative, meaning if it's not a security, then it's a commodity.