U.S. CFTC establishes fintech initiative ‘LabCFTC’ in New York

The United State Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced the launch of a fintech initiative ‘LabCFTC’ that is aimed in promoting fintech innovation in order to improve the quality, resiliency as well as competitiveness of the markets the CFTC oversees.

The fintech office is located in New York and will constantly work on to accelerate CFTC engagement with fintech and regtech solutions. Being the agency’s focal point to promote fintech innovation and fair competition, LabCFTC makes CFTC more accessible to fintech innovators. The initiative was approved by a unanimous vote of the Commission.

The LabCFTC will serve as a platform in order to spread the CFTC’s understanding of new and emerging technologies. The fintech office will also serve as an information source for the Commissioners and the CFTC staff on responsible innovation that may influence policy development.

“Simply put, LabCFTC is intended to help us bridge the gap from where we are today to where we need to be: 21st century regulation for today’s digital markets,” J. Christopher Giancarlo, Acting Chairman of CFTC, said.

One of the main components of LabCFTC office is GuidePoint, which is a dedicated point of contact for fintech innovators to engage with the CFTC, learn about the CFTC’s regulatory framework, and obtain feedback and information on the implementation of innovative technology ideas. Another core component is CFTC 2.0 that fosters adoption of new technologies within the CFTC’s own mission activities.

The fintech office will collaborate among fintech industry and CCFTC market participants that will benefit many businesses and members of the public, relying on the derivatives markets the CFTC oversees. Also, LabCFTC will facilitate CFTC participation in studies and research and cooperation with financial regulators at home and overseas. Other responsibilities of LabCFTC include monitoring trends and developments to ensure that CFTC’s regulatory framework supports responsible technological innovation, and information sharing about fintech applications including potential use cases, benefits, risks, and solutions.

“The purpose of LabCFTC is twofold: The first is to provide greater regulatory certainly that encourages market-enhancing FinTech innovation to improve the quality, resiliency, and competitiveness of our markets. The second is to identify and utilize emerging technologies that can enable the CFTC to carry out its mission more effectively and efficiently in the new digital world,” Giancarlo added.