The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has revealed that it filed a record number of crypto enforcement actions this fiscal year. “In FY 2023, the CFTC brought 47 actions involving conduct related to digital asset commodities, representing more than 49% of all actions filed during that period,” the regulator shared.
Record Number of Crypto Enforcement Actions
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) released its enforcement results for Fiscal Year 2023 on Tuesday, showing “a record-setting number of digital asset cases.”
The regulator explained that its Division of Enforcement (DOE) “filed 96 enforcement actions charging fraud, manipulation, and other significant violations in diverse markets, including digital assets and swaps markets, resulting in over $4.3 billion in penalties, restitution, and disgorgement.”
Noting that his agency remains “laser-focused on stopping and deterring fraud and manipulation in the U.S.,” CFTC Chairman Rostin Behnam said:
I am proud of the Division of Enforcement’s groundbreaking work in the digital asset space, which resulted in a record number of cases.
The agency detailed that it “filed high-profile complaints addressing frauds by major exchanges, individual Ponzi-schemers, and others; obtained a first-of-its-kind litigation victory against a decentralized autonomous organization; charged and won another litigation victory against a digital asset futures platform; brought an innovative litigation involving cross-market manipulation in blockchains; and continued its efforts to protect the public in the decentralized finance space.”
Emphasizing that the CFTC has “cemented its reputation as a premier enforcement agency in the digital asset space,” the agency stated:
In FY 2023, the CFTC brought 47 actions involving conduct related to digital asset commodities, representing more than 49% of all actions filed during that period.
Among the high-profile cases pursued by the CFTC are those targeting Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) and FTX, Binance, Voyager, and Celsius Network. Additionally, the CFTC took action against three decentralized finance (defi) platforms in September.
Some believe that the CFTC is better suited to oversee the crypto sector than the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Several bills have been introduced in Congress to make the CFTC the primary regulator of the crypto spot markets.
What do you think about the CFTC filing a record number of enforcement actions against the crypto industry this year? Let us know in the comments section below.
