Who regulates crypto in the United States?

No single agency regulates crypto in the United States. Oversight is divided among several federal agencies and the 50 states. As of October 2026, Congress has passed one crypto law, on stablecoins, and most other rules come from the agencies.

Which federal agencies are involved?

• The SEC. The Securities and Exchange Commission oversees securities, meaning investments such as stocks and bonds, and any crypto asset sold as one. Paul Atkins has chaired it since 2025. See what the SEC does in crypto.
• The CFTC. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversees futures and other derivatives, and treats bitcoin and ether as commodities. Michael Selig was sworn in as chairman in December 2025. See what the CFTC does in crypto.
• The Treasury Department. Its Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) enforces anti-money-laundering rules, and its Office of Foreign Assets Control enforces sanctions.
• Bank regulators. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation decide what banks may do with crypto.
• The IRS. The tax agency treats digital assets as property, not currency.
• The Justice Department. Federal prosecutors bring criminal cases over fraud and money laundering.

What do the states do?

States license companies that move money for customers, and most crypto exchanges need state licenses to operate. New York has required its own BitLicense since 2015. California's Digital Financial Assets Law began requiring a license on July 1, 2026.

What has Congress done?

Congress has passed one law. The GENIUS Act, signed on July 18, 2025, sets federal rules for stablecoins, which are tokens designed to hold a fixed value such as one dollar. Agencies were still writing its detailed rules in October 2026.

A broader bill has stalled. The CLARITY Act would have divided the crypto market between the SEC and the CFTC by statute. The House passed it in July 2025, but a Senate vote to take it up failed 49 to 50 on September 15, 2026.

The agencies have moved without it. The SEC and CFTC issued a joint interpretation of crypto assets in March 2026, the SEC proposed crypto rules in August, and the CFTC opened a rulemaking on October 5.

What are the gaps?

The largest gap is ordinary trading. No federal agency licenses exchanges where people buy and sell tokens such as bitcoin without borrowing. The CFTC can pursue fraud and manipulation in those markets but cannot supervise the platforms day to day.

Rules written by agencies can be rewritten by the next set of appointees, a point Atkins himself has made, according to CoinDesk. Critics, including Democratic staff on the Senate Banking Committee, argue that lighter crypto rules weaken investor protection.

Rules differ by state and by country, and they change often. For a specific situation, check the agency's own website or ask a qualified professional.