Regulation By Enforcement Is Out at CFTC, Acting Chair Pham Says

U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Acting Chair Caroline Pham said Tuesday the regulatory agency has reorganized its enforcement division to “refocus” on fraud and “stop regulation by enforcement.”

Under former Chairman Rostin Behnam, the CFTC’s Division of Enforcement had a variety of task forces, including one focused on insider trading, another focused on cybersecurity and emerging technologies and a third aimed at combatting environmental fraud. The new reorganization slims the number of task forces down to just two.

The newly-created Complex Fraud Task Force is tasked with handling the enforcement, from preliminary inquiries to litigations, of complex fraud and manipulation across all asset classes. Paul Hayeck, deputy director of the enforcement division, will be the Complex Fraud Task Force’s acting chief. The Retail Fraud and General Enforcement Task Force will handle retail fraud and general enforcement, and will be led by Charles Marvine, also a deputy director of the agency’s enforcement division.

“This simplified structure will stop regulation by enforcement and is more efficient,” Pham said in a press statement. “These much-needed changes will maximize the CFTC’s resources to bring more actions to pursue fraudsters and other bad actors, and not punish good citizens.”

According to the CFTC’s announcement, the new structure will “more efficiently utilize the CFTC’s resources to prevent fraud, manipulation and abuse and ensure market integrity” as well as “provide enhanced governance and oversight of enforcement matters to prevent overreach and enhance consistency, fairness and due process.”

The CFTC’s rejection of the so-called regulation by enforcement strategy pursued under the Biden Administration echoes the ongoing about-face at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the CFTC’s sister regulatory agency. Under current Acting Chair Mark Uyeda, the SEC has established a Crypto Task Force and disavowed the agency’s previous strategy of regulation by enforcement under former Chair Gary Gensler.

Read more: SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce Lays Out 10 Priorities for New Crypto Task Force