'New Golden Age': CFTC's Pham announces regulated crypto spot trading has arrived

Bitnomial has become the first exchange to list regulator-approved spot cryptocurrency products, and it is officially set to take off, said Commodity Futures Trading Commission Acting Chair Caroline Pham, calling the moment a "new golden age for innovation in America."

The move is the latest by the Trump administration and federal agencies to take a friendlier stance toward the crypto industry.

"The CFTC has a rich history of welcoming responsible innovation on futures exchanges by balancing regulatory flexibility with core principles that safeguard both institutional and retail traders," Pham said in a statement on Thursday. "Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, this Administration has developed a comprehensive all-of-government plan for America to reclaim its place as the world leader in digital asset markets, and the CFTC has a central role to play."

The agency has taken several steps over the past year since Donald Trump came back into office, including launching the "Crypto Sprint" to focus on clarifying rules for crypto. This also follows a joint guidance from the SEC and CFTC in September, which said registered exchanges are not prohibited from facilitating trading of certain spot commodity products such as crypto assets.

In a statement on Thursday, Bitnomial said Pham's work was pivotal.

"We're bringing leveraged spot crypto trading back to the U.S. with CFTC oversight," CEO of Bitnomial Luke Hoersten said. "We're grateful to Chairman Pham for her pro-business approach to allow regulated entities to utilize the full scope of statutory capabilities afforded under U.S. law."

Bitnomial's launch is scheduled for the week of Dec. 8.