Federal crypto classification

Asset class

Bitcoin / ether-like digital commodity narrative Other crypto-asset / token Payment stablecoin / fiat-referenced token Token that may be a security NFT / collectible Deposit token / bank liability token

Activities (pick all that apply)

Spot trading / exchange Custody / safekeeping Brokerage / order routing Issuance / mint-redeem Staking / yield Lending / credit Payments / remittance Derivatives / leveraged products

Analyse federal layers

Standing federal notes

As of 2026-10-16, verified against primary federal sources.

FinCEN

FinCEN treats a convertible virtual currency exchanger or administrator as a money transmitter, and thus a money services business (MSB), under guidance FIN-2013-G001 (18 March 2013) and FIN-2019-G001 (9 May 2019), applying 31 CFR Parts 1010 and 1022. An MSB registers via FinCEN Form 107 within 180 days of commencing operations, renews every 24 months by 31 December, and re-registers within 180 days of a qualifying ownership, equity or agent-count change. Registration is not a licence and does not replace any state money transmitter requirement. BSA duties include written AML policies, a compliance officer, training, independent testing, and SAR/CTR filing. A 7 April 2026 FinCEN proposal would overhaul AML/CFT programme rules across MSBs generally, not CVC-specific; comments closed 9 June 2026 with no final rule yet.

GENIUS Act

The GENIUS Act passed the Senate 68-30 on 17 June 2025, the House 308-122 on 17 July 2025, and was signed into law on 18 July 2025. It creates three federal issuer routes, 100 per cent reserve backing, monthly disclosures and Bank Secrecy Act coverage. The one-year rulemaking deadline passed on 18 July 2026 without a final rule from the primary regulators. Treasury published a section 3 proposal on 18 August 2026, with comments due 19 October. The Federal Reserve issued two further proposals on 24 September, published in the Federal Register on 29 September with comments due 30 November: one covers the prudential and supervisory framework, and one the application process for Board-supervised insured depository institution subsidiaries. These remain proposals, not final rules. Full effect remains the earlier of final rules plus 120 days or 18 January 2027.

Market structure

The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, H.R. 3633, passed the House 294-134 on 17 July 2025 and would divide digital-asset oversight between the CFTC and SEC, with permitted payment stablecoins carved out to the GENIUS Act. The Senate Banking Committee advanced its version 15-9 on 14 May 2026. On 15 September 2026 the Senate rejected cloture on the motion to proceed by 49 to 50, below the required three-fifths threshold, and a motion to reconsider was entered. No later floor action was identified by 16 October 2026. The bill is not enacted.

SEC

Paul Atkins has chaired the SEC since April 2025, with Commissioner Hester Peirce leading the Crypto Task Force. Project Crypto, launched in July 2025 and run jointly with the CFTC since 30 January 2026, favours exemptive relief and rulemaking over enforcement. The 17 March 2026 joint interpretation set a five-part token taxonomy. SEC staff issued crypto-asset FAQs on 25 September 2026 explaining that interpretation; the FAQs have no legal force and create no new obligations. Securities analysis remains fact-specific by asset and transaction flow.

CFTC

Michael Selig has chaired the CFTC since 22 December 2025. The 17 March 2026 joint SEC and CFTC interpretation named 18 digital commodities, moving their spot trading toward CFTC oversight, a perimeter the CLARITY Act would make exclusive if enacted. CFTC staff updated its registrant and registered-entity crypto and blockchain FAQs on 24 September 2026 for tokenised permitted investments and blockchain recordkeeping. Derivatives on digital commodities remain CFTC territory; broader spot authority awaits legislation.