ErisX responds to the CFTC's request for information on Ethereum

ErisX, a Chicago-based cryptocurrency exchange, has filed a Comment Letter to the CFTC regarding the Ethereum network. Last year, in December, the CFTC sent out a request for information seeking public feedback on the seeking information on ether and the Ethereum network. Specifically, the CFTC wanted to understand the "similarities and distinctions between certain virtual currencies...as well as Ether-specific opportunities, challenges, and risks."

In their Comment Letter, ErisX states that a "lack of regulatory clarity has, in some instances, hampered the participation of enterprises, particularly regulated enterprises, and consequently, a number of unregulated or lightly regulated 'exchanges' and 'brokers' have emerged to fill the gap, many of them off-shore." ErisX believes that the "introduction of standardized, CFTC-regulated products, on a robustly operated trading and custody infrastructure" will benefit Ethereum by allowing broader participation, diverse time horizons for transparent pricing, more robust and liquid markets, enhanced price discovery, and improved risk management for asset owners.

While officials representing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission have previously suggested that ether is not a security, the CFTC has not taken an official position.