CFTC and SEC propose inclusion of cryptos as an amendment to Form PF

Sahana Kiran
Bitcoin
Source – Unsplash

Regulations have become more than necessary in the crypto-verse. The industry went from being heavily disregarded to extensively scrutinized in no time. While certain countries continue to view Bitcoin as a threat, a few others have openly embraced it. The regulatory clarity around crypto has been quite hazy in the US. With a wide range of regulators trying to govern the market, there’s nothing but chaos.

Now, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission [CFTC] and the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC] of the US are proposing amendments to Form PF. These entities were on a mission to include crypto into the same to ensure accurate reporting. The amendment further separates the categories of “cash and cash equivalents” and “digital assets.”

If the amendment gets a green signal, Form PF will create a new sub-asset class for crypto and other digital assets. Elaborating on the same, the Federal Register website read,

“We have observed the growth as well as the volatility of this asset class in recent years. Accordingly, we believe it is important to collect information on funds’ exposures to digital assets in order to understand better their overall market exposures.”

Here’s how crypto will appear in the amended Form PF

According to the proposal, assets that are either issued or transferred via blockchain would be considered “digital assets.” These include “virtual currencies,” “coins,” as well as “tokens.” The platform added,

“We are proposing the term and definition to be consistent with the SEC’s recent statement on digital assets, and we believe that such term and definition would provide a consistent understanding of the type of assets we intend to address.”

Both these entities have taken immense interest in the crypto-verse. While the SEC has been quite hostile towards the industry, the latest move would bring more clarity surrounding the crypto-verse.