The SEC and CFTC are about to resume operations, and progress is expected in ETF applications and encryption spot Margin Trading.

On November 14, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) are set to resume operations after a government shutdown lasting 43 days. According to the operational plans of the two agencies, employees will return to their posts “on the next regular workday following the formal enactment of the appropriations bill.” During the government shutdown, both agencies made significant staff cuts, and their operations almost came to a standstill. The SEC's review capacity was severely limited, especially with respect to the approval of applications for exchange-traded funds (ETFs, including those related to Crypto Assets), which essentially came to a halt. The CFTC, on the other hand, “stopped the vast majority of its operations,” including enforcement, market oversight, and regulatory rule-making. After the government reopens, the SEC and CFTC will need some time to handle the backlog of matters, including registration applications submitted during the past 43 days. Some crypto companies learned towards the end of the shutdown that it would soon come to an end and rushed to submit IPO and ETF applications. SEC Chairman Atkins recently revealed that the SEC plans to “establish a Token taxonomy” in the coming months, anchored by the Howey test. CFTC Acting Chairman Pham stated that the commission has been pushing to approve leveraged Spot Crypto Assets trading as early as December.