Former Regulators Urge Lighter Touch to Bring Crypto Trading Onshore

A bipartisan group of former SEC and CFTC officials is urging regulators to adopt a lighter touch when bringing crypto-related trading onshore. The $2.5 trillion industry has been largely driven overseas by unclear regulatory lines, but these experts argue that getting the rules right can attract liquidity back to the US.

The signatories, including former CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo and SEC Commissioner Steven Wallman, warn that overlapping rules can pile on additional compliance costs, driving markets further away. They point out that similar risks should face similar regulatory treatment and that U.S. regulation has largely driven offshore perpetual futures trading.

The issue is particularly relevant as the CFTC looks to bring popular platforms like Hyperliquid into the United States. Prediction market platform Kalshi estimates that offshore perpetuals trading topped $90 trillion in 2025, up from around $28 trillion two years earlier.