CFTC Considers FTX's Democratized Clearing Proposal

On May 25, 2022, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC") conducted a public hearing to consider a request from LedgerX, LLC, d.b.a. FTX US Derivatives ("FTX"), to amend its order of registration as a derivatives clearing organization ("DCO") to allow direct clearing of listed futures contracts on Bitcoin and Ethereum and other digital assets by retail participants. This is a dramatic departure from a traditional clearing model where retail participants can trade and clear futures only through professional intermediaries – registered and heavily-regulated futures commission merchants ("FCMs"). 

This proposal follows the trend of democratization and disintermediation in crypto and digital assets markets to allow broader participation of retail traders, in contrast to participation by the traditional professional traders and hedgers, such as farmers, refiners, and financial institutions.