CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam Resigns Amid Anti-Crypto Exodus

Rostin Behnam, chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced his resignation on Tuesday, just a day after Michael Barr, Federal Reserve Board governor and vice chair for supervision, stepped down from his supervisory role. SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, who announced his resignation in November, and Barr, two key masterminds behind the infamous government crackdown on the crypto industry known as Operation Choke Point 2.0, both resigned to avoid conflict with a pro-crypto Trump administration. Benham, who has taken a relatively moderate approach to crypto regulation is generally considered less divisive but not pro-crypto. “After more than seven years at the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, I will be stepping down from my position as Chairman on January 20^th,” Benham said. “We worked to address regulatory gaps and uncertainty. We also responsibly engaged new entrants to support innovation.”