Rostin Behnam, the chair of the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), has warned that crypto firms can expect to face more enforcement actions from regulators within the next two years. Behnam made these remarks during the 2024 Global Conference on May 6th.

Despite the "bad events" that occurred in the crypto market during 2022, leading to a downturn and several companies filing for bankruptcy, Behnam acknowledged that the crypto market continues to grow and attract investors and entrepreneurs. He did not specifically mention whether the CFTC or the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would be responsible for the enforcement actions, but both regulators currently have ongoing lawsuits against numerous crypto firms.

Behnam predicted that in the next 6 to 24 months, there will likely be another cycle of enforcement actions due to the cycle of asset appreciation and increased interest from retail investors. He stated, "We're going to probably see in the next 6 to 18 months, or 6 to 24 months, another cycle of enforcement actions because of this cycle of asset appreciation and interest by retail investors." Behnam emphasized that without a proper regulatory framework, transparency, and the necessary tools typically used by regulators, fraud and manipulation in the crypto market will continue to occur.

The CFTC chair agreed with a moderator's suggestion that having U.S. lawmakers bring crypto firms under a regulatory framework is the proper course of action. Members of the House of Representatives are currently awaiting a floor vote on legislation that could clarify the roles of the SEC and CFTC over digital assets. This bill moved out of committee in July 2023.

The need for increased regulatory oversight in the crypto industry is highlighted by a Cornerstone Research report from January, which showed that the number of crypto-related enforcement cases brought by the SEC in 2023 was the highest since 2013. The SEC has pending cases against various U.S. crypto firms, including Kraken, Binance, and Coinbase, and recently issued a Wells notice to Robinhood Crypto on May 4th, which typically precedes an enforcement action.

Behnam also revealed in October that approximately one-third of all enforcement actions taken by the CFTC against crypto firms occurred in 2023 alone. The CFTC reported in November that it had initiated 47 actions in the digital asset commodities sector, with cases involving former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried and former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky. The CFTC was also a party to the $4.3 billion settlement between Binance and U.S. authorities in November.