Key Takeaways
- CFTC Chair Michael Selig cited BTC, ETH, SOL, XLM, XTZ and XRP as examples of digital commodities on October 5.
- The six assets were already included in a March 2026 SEC-CFTC interpretation, so Selig was not announcing new classifications.
- The comments came as the CFTC begins writing rules for leveraged retail crypto markets under its existing federal authority.
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Michael S. Selig has highlighted Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Stellar, Tezos and XRP as examples of digital commodities while outlining the agency’s expanding crypto regulatory framework.
Selig made the comments during an October 5 speech at the Fordham Law Blockchain Regulatory Symposium, where he discussed how the CFTC plans to regulate certain crypto markets using powers it already has under the Commodity Exchange Act.
The six assets named were Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Solana (SOL), Stellar (XLM), Tezos (XTZ) and XRP.
However, the statement should not be interpreted as a new legal designation for those six tokens. They were already included among a larger group of digital commodities in joint Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and CFTC guidance published in March 2026.
CFTC Chair Highlights Six Digital Commodities
Selig referenced the six cryptocurrencies while discussing digital commodity markets and the CFTC’s role in developing federal rules for crypto trading. The assets were as follows:
| Crypto Asset | Ticker |
| Bitcoin | BTC |
| Ethereum | ETH |
| Solana | SOL |
| Stellar | XLM |
| Tezos | XTZ |
| XRP | XRP |
Table 1. Six Digital Commodities Highlighted by CFTC Chair Michael Selig
The list attracted attention because regulatory treatment outside Bitcoin and Ethereum has historically been less straightforward.
XRP and Solana, in particular, have been at the center of US debates over whether certain crypto assets should fall under securities or commodities regulation under the previous administration.
But Selig’s remarks did not create six new commodity classifications. Instead, he drew from a broader regulatory taxonomy that federal agencies published earlier this year.
The List Is Not Limited to Six Cryptocurrencies
The March 2026 SEC-CFTC interpretation identifies a considerably larger group of assets as examples of digital commodities. That list includes the following:
- Aptos (APT)
- Avalanche (AVAX)
- Bitcoin (BTC)
- Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
- Cardano (ADA)
- Chainlink (LINK)
- Dogecoin (DOGE)
- Ether (ETH)
- Hedera (HBAR)
- Litecoin (LTC)
- Polkadot (DOT)
- Shiba Inu (SHIB)
- Solana (SOL)
- Stellar (XLM)
- Tezos (XTZ)
- XRP (XRP)
Selig highlighted six examples during his remarks, but the existing federal interpretation already provides a broader non-exclusive list.
What Does the CFTC Mean by a Digital Commodity?
The SEC and CFTC’s March interpretation defines a digital commodity as a crypto asset tied to a functional blockchain or crypto system whose value comes from the operation of that system and market supply and demand, rather than primarily from expectations of profit based on others’ essential managerial efforts.
The agencies distinguish digital commodities from categories including:
- Digital securities
- Stablecoins
- Digital collectibles
- Digital tools
Under the interpretation, digital commodities do not themselves provide traditional economic rights such as a claim on a company’s future profits, revenue or assets.
Instead, they can have technical uses within a blockchain network, including helping validate transactions, secure the network or support other functions required for the system to operate.
XRP and SOL Inclusion Does Not Mean Congress Passed a New Law
Selig’s comments are significant for regulatory clarity, but they do not amount to a new act of Congress.
The CFTC chair was referring to an interpretation developed under existing federal law.
That means his remarks do not replace the need for broader market structure legislation that would establish more permanent statutory responsibilities between the CFTC and SEC.
Congress attempted to address those issues through the CLARITY Act, but the bill failed to advance in the Senate in September.
The agency has since moved forward with its own rulemaking in areas where it believes existing law already gives the agency authority.
CFTC Is Building a New Framework for Crypto Markets
The CFTC published an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) covering leveraged, margined and financed retail crypto transactions under Section 2(c)(2)(D) of the Commodity Exchange Act.
The agency refers to these transactions as crypto asset transactions (CTXs).
The proposal is intended to eventually create a federal regulatory framework covering areas such as:
- Customer asset protection
- Capital requirements
- Anti-Money Laundering (AML) controls
- Proof of Reserves (PoR)
- Market manipulation safeguards
- Trading and operational standards
The CFTC is also considering a new category of federally regulated venues known as crypto asset markets (CAMs) for eligible platforms offering covered products.
The framework is still in its early stages and is not yet a final rule.
The CFTC and SEC Developed the Taxonomy Together
The SEC and CFTC issued the March 2026 interpretation jointly as part of a broader effort to create a common framework for classifying crypto assets.
For context, that matters because disagreements between the two agencies have historically created uncertainty about whether individual tokens should be treated as securities or commodities.
The joint interpretation explicitly states that digital commodities, digital collectibles and digital tools are not themselves securities under the framework.
However, the regulatory treatment of a transaction can still depend on how an asset is offered, sold or packaged.
Describing an asset as a digital commodity does not automatically mean every product or transaction involving it falls outside securities or other financial regulations.
Why the Six Assets Still Matter
Although Selig did not create a new list, naming six crypto assets in a major regulatory speech gives the CFTC’s current interpretation more visibility.
For XRP and SOL, the remarks are particularly notable because both have faced years of regulatory debate in the United States.
Still, investors should distinguish between three separate concepts:
| Development | What It Means |
| Selig names six digital commodities | Examples used in an October 5 speech |
| March 2026 SEC-CFTC interpretation | Broader regulatory classification framework |
| Congressional legislation | Would provide statutory authority and potentially more durable rules |
Table 2. What the CFTC Digital Commodity Statements Actually Mean
The first two already exist. The third remains unresolved after comprehensive market structure legislation stalled in Congress.
What Comes Next
The CFTC’s immediate focus is its new crypto rulemaking process.
The public will have an opportunity to comment on the agency’s proposed framework before the CFTC decides whether to move forward with formal regulations.
The larger question is whether Congress eventually passes legislation that creates a permanent federal market structure for digital assets or leaves the SEC and CFTC to continue building rules under existing authority.
Selig’s comments clarify how the CFTC currently views the assets, but they do not settle every legal question surrounding crypto markets.
What this means for you: BTC, ETH, SOL, XLM, XTZ and XRP were not suddenly declared commodities this week. They were already included in the SEC-CFTC’s broader digital commodity interpretation, while Selig’s remarks reinforce how the CFTC intends to treat them as it develops new federal crypto trading rules.
