Michael Selig was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Dec. 18 and is set to be sworn in as the 15th chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, ending a long stretch of interim leadership at the derivatives regulator.
Return to a familiar regulator
Selig previously worked at the CFTC beginning in 2014, serving as a law clerk to then-Commissioner Christopher Giancarlo.
He later moved into private practice advising trading firms, exchanges, and digital asset companies on U.S. securities and commodities compliance.
Earlier this year, he returned to government as chief counsel to the SEC’s Crypto Task Force, where he advised SEC Chair Paul Atkins and participated in inter-agency discussions on digital asset oversight.
Transition after Pham’s interim tenure
Selig will replace Acting Chair Caroline Pham, who led the agency for much of 2025.
For months, Pham was also the CFTC’s only Senate-confirmed commissioner, highlighting the commission’s leadership vacuum during a period of regulatory change.
Enforcement focus and process changes
During his confirmation hearing, Selig signaled support for a narrower enforcement approach that prioritizes fraud, manipulation, and abusive conduct over what he described as minor technical violations.
He argued that overly technical cases can drain agency resources and push legitimate firms offshore without meaningfully improving market integrity.
The agency has also adjusted investigative procedures over the past year to provide firms more transparency and additional time during enforcement processes.
Bitcoin market oversight and legislative backdrop
Selig’s confirmation arrives as Congress considers legislation that could expand the CFTC’s authority over spot markets for digital commodities.
The CFTC has already pursued pilots involving tokenized collateral and spot leveraged products on regulated venues, and Selig has backed clearer market structure rules and coordination with the SEC, Treasury, and banking regulators.
Market participants tracking bitcoin derivatives and potential spot oversight are expected to watch Selig’s early decisions closely.
