CFTC Adopts Nasdaq’s Cutting-Edge Surveillance to Police Derivatives and Crypto Markets

By José Oramas August 28, 2025 In CFTC, Cryptocurrency, Nasdaq

Source:AdobeStock

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) will deploy Nasdaq’s market surveillance technology to enhance its ability to monitor and regulate digital asset markets.
The system is designed to provide the CFTC with automated alerts and cross-market analytics to detect fraud, manipulation, and disruptive trading activity more efficiently.
The move comes as the CFTC prepares for an expanded role in the crypto space, which could be solidified by the CLARITY Act, a bill that would classify most cryptocurrencies as commodities under the CFTC’s jurisdiction.

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) will deploy Nasdaq’s market surveillance technology as part of its plan to expand oversight of digital assets.

In a statement released Wednesday, the regulator said the system is designed to shield markets from fraud, abuse, and manipulation, and is an upgrade essential for the agency’s mandate, according to CFTC Acting Chair Caroline Pham.

Nasdaq Market Surveillance will, for the first time, provide the CFTC with automated alerts and cross-market analytics that will benefit each of the CFTC’s operating divisions and better protect our markets from fraud, manipulation and abuse. This new suite of solutions will also improve efficiency in analyzing market trends and identifying unusual or disruptive trading activity so that our lean and talented staff can take appropriate action more quickly.

Acting Chairman Caroline D. Pham

CFTC Prepares for an Expanded Role in the Crypto Space

The move comes as the CFTC prepares for a heavier role in cryptocurrency markets. Earlier this month, the agency launched its “Crypto Sprint” initiative, focused on futures trading and policy recommendations from the President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets.

It could significantly expand the regulator’s mandate, granting it primary jurisdiction over blockchain-based crypto assets.

The surveillance upgrade also comes as lawmakers debate the CLARITY Act, a bill that would split authority between the CFTC and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The bill passed the House last month and will classify most cryptocurrencies as commodities, expanding the CFTC’s remit while pulling them out of the SEC’s jurisdiction.

Recently, the SEC delayed decisions on several Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP ETFs until October, as well as proposals for staking features and in-kind redemptions.