U.S. Financial Market Regulators Propose Making US Financial Markets 24/7 (CFTC and SEC)
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) jointly announced a new era of close collaboration between the two U.S. market regulators, aiming to harmonize their approaches as financial products—especially crypto-assets—increasingly span both securities and commodities jurisdictions. They emphasized the need to remove regulatory uncertainty and barriers so innovation in markets and products can thrive in the U.S. Key priorities include aligning product and venue definitions, streamlining data/reporting standards, harmonizing capital and margin requirements, enabling joint innovation exemptions (especially for decentralized finance), and supporting 24/7 markets and event contracts. The agencies are launching a joint roundtable on September 29, 2025, to discuss how greater regulatory unity can help retain innovative activity in the U.S. and foster global competitiveness, concluding with a call to use “regulatory harmonization” as a foundation for a new phase of American financial innovation. [Source: CFTC]
Bolivian Central Bank to Publish CBDC White Paper (Vision360)
Banco Central de Bolivia (BCB) reportedly will publish a white paper on a prospective digital boliviano central bank digital currency (CBDC) by the end of September 2025. Motivations for this investigation include modernizing the domestic payment systems and facilitating cross-border transactions. While the BCB is late to the game, central bank officials emphasize that they have completed the necessary groundwork. [Source: Vision360]
Upcoming Speaking Engagements:
The CB+DC Conference (Nassau, Bahamas, September 9-11) is a premier gathering centered on CBDCs, tokenized assets, and stablecoins. It provides a forum for central bankers, commercial bankers, technology innovators, policymakers, and academics to explore the latest advancements in digital currency, engage with experts and peers, and discuss the future of digital currency. [Register here but before you do, email me at john@kiffmeister.com for a 15% discount]
Stablecoin NYC 2025 (New York City on November 14-15) will be the definitive conference for exploring the future of digital money and intelligent payments. The event brings together founders, C-level executives, investors, policymakers, and developers for two immersive days of talks, panels, and networking. This be the place to be if you’re building, backing, or regulating the next wave of programmable finance. [Register here]
I produce a monthly digest of digital fiat currency (DFC) developments exclusively for the official sector (e.g., central banks, ministries of finance and international financial institution (e.g., the BIS, IMF, OECD, World Bank)) plus academics and firms that are active in the DFC space (commercial banks, technology providers, consultants, etc.). (DFCs include central bank digital currency (CBDC), stablecoins and tokenized deposits.) It goes out via email on the first business day of every month, and if you’re interested in being on the mailing list, please email me at john@kiffmeister.com.
