{
  "id": 8237868,
  "title": "CFTC Draws a No-Custody Line for Trading Software",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/cftc-draws-a-no-custody-line-for-trading-software",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-18T09:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ReadWrite",
    "slug": "readwrite",
    "url": "https://readwrite.com/passive-software-exemption-cftc/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) released new guidance on September 17 that may expand online access to cryptocurrency and prediction-market trading by exempting certain software providers from broker-registration requirements. The agency stated that passive software providers working with regulated entities will not face penalties for not registering as brokers, as long as they never gain custody of users' assets. This condition, \"no custody, ever,\" is crucial for determining whether a company needs a broker license. The new guidance distinguishes between companies that merely route orders to regulated partners and those that manage money directly. Prior regulations required any company soliciting trade orders, sending them to futures commission merchants, and collecting fees or commissions to register as a broker. The new guidance excludes companies that only have a passive role and partner with already-regulated entities, affecting software providers, regulated trading partners, crypto-wallet users, and prediction-market participants who access markets through third-party apps. The guidance is still a working policy, pending a final rulemaking or new guidance. The guidance's timing coincides with senators blocking crypto-market legislation. CFTC Chairman Michael Selig and SEC Chairman Paul Atkins plan to implement digital-asset rules without waiting on Congress. The guidance applies only if a software provider partners with a regulated entity and never takes custody of user assets. Companies like Phantom Technologies, Crypto.com, and ProphetX already operate under this model, providing access to prediction-market trading to many crypto-wallet holders. The exemption is temporary and could change once a formal rulemaking begins, leaving room for various applications to fit into the carve-out.",
  "summary": "The passive software exemption lets non-custodial apps expand crypto and prediction-market access while the CFTC keeps its policy provisional. The post CFTC Draws a No-Custody Line for Trading Software appeared first on ReadWrite .",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}