Bitcoin News: The chairman of the US derivatives regulator has said that digital currency derivatives fall within his agency’s remit

In a testimony before the US Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry the chairman of the US derivatives regulator has said that digital currency derivatives fall within his agency’s remit. The testimony from Timothy Massad, who chairs the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), may not please many Bitcoin stakeholders.

He said that while his agency does not have specific rules governing digital currencies, it would oversee futures and swaps in any commodity and this includes digital currencies. According to him the agency’s authority extends to futures and swaps contracts in any commodity, derivative contracts based on a virtual currency represent one area within the responsibility.

Interestingly, Bitcoin is a digital currency which does not fall under any jurisdiction and cannot be controlled by any government agency for that matter; this is its special feature. However, with the attempts on the part of various government agencies in the US in the last one or so years sound a desperate attempt to regulate it.

According to Mr. Massad the CFTC defines commodities “very broadly” and the term is not limited to agricultural commodities like metals and energy, but also includes derivatives linked to stock market indices, currencies and electricity. Thus, in his views digital currency derivatives are a form of innovation that his agency wants to encourage.