{"id":127224,"date":"2025-09-10T09:11:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T09:11:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/127224\/"},"modified":"2025-09-10T09:11:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T09:11:09","slug":"cryptos-turning-point-how-the-market-structure-bill-could-redefine-u-s-digital-asset-trading","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/127224\/","title":{"rendered":"Crypto\u2019s Turning Point: How the Market Structure Bill Could Redefine U.S. Digital Asset Trading"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a move that could fundamentally reshape how digital assets are traded in the U.S., lawmakers are advancing a bill that finally promises what the crypto industry has spent years demanding: regulatory clarity. For Brandon Mulvihill, Co-Founder and CEO of Crossover Markets, the Market Structure Bill is more than just legislation\u2014it\u2019s a \u201cturning point\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"\"Brandon Mulvihill<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the first time ever in cryptocurrency trading that we\u2019re talking about a national, regulatory framework,\u201d Mulvihill said. \u201cEvery other asset class in financial services benefits from that. Crypto has been the exception,\u201d he told Traders Magazine.<\/p>\n

The Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act<\/a>\u2014better known as the Market Structure Bill\u2014seeks to create a unified federal framework for regulating digital assets. <\/p>\n

The bill clarifies which digital assets fall under the jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) versus the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), while also defining key market roles such as digital commodity exchanges, custodians, and brokers. <\/p>\n

Importantly, it eliminates the need for firms to obtain a patchwork of state-by-state licenses, offering instead a streamlined national path to compliance. The bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives with bipartisan support on May 22, 2024<\/a>, marking the first time a standalone crypto market structure bill cleared the full House. <\/p>\n

As of 2025, it remains under Senate consideration, with mounting pressure from the industry and investors for Congress to finalize a clear and comprehensive regulatory framework before more innovation and liquidity move offshore.<\/p>\n

Mulvihill has been closely involved in shaping the bill, and he sees it as a necessary evolution that brings digital assets closer to the standards of traditional finance, without smothering the innovation that defines the space. \u201cThe cryptocurrency market started\u2014as most markets do\u2014in an unregulated format,\u201d he explained. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat led the industry to adopt state-by-state Money Transmitter Licenses (MTLs), which were never really built for this purpose. The result was a patchwork system that forced companies down a vertically integrated path, regardless of whether that made sense for their business model,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Market Structure Bill seeks to modernize the regulatory landscape by clearly defining the roles of market participants\u2014custodians, market makers, and digital commodity exchanges\u2014and aligning each with responsibilities suited to their specific functions. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt allows crypto to be regulated in a format analogous to traditional finance,\u201d Mulvihill said. \u201cIf a firm wants to be vertically integrated, great. But if they want to specialize\u2014like we do at Crossover\u2014they can just tick that one box and operate accordingly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crossover\u2019s business model, as an execution-only venue, doesn\u2019t touch client funds or act as a counterparty, Mulvihill said. That operational simplicity allows the firm to focus exclusively on performance and infrastructure. \u201cOur platform CROSSx currently matches trades in single-digit microseconds,\u201d he noted, \u201cwith 1,151 FIX sessions already deployed in production. The DCE rules in the bill make it possible for firms like ours to scale efficiently without being burdened by capital requirements intended for businesses that handle client money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mulvihill sees the bill\u2019s dual-path compliance approach as a smart move\u2014offering regulated entities a clearer, faster way to enter the market without starting from scratch. \u201cThere should be a very clean pathway for how traditional financial institutions can get involved in crypto, should they wish to do so,\u201d he said. \u201cWe want the U.S. to be the focal point of the global crypto market, and that means making it easier for both incumbent players and crypto natives to operate here.\u201d<\/p>\n

For years, regulatory ambiguity has driven liquidity and innovation offshore. Mulvihill believes this bill could reverse that trend. \u201cThe answer is a resounding yes,\u201d he said when asked if this could make the U.S. a global crypto hub again. \u201cWe don\u2019t need to reinvent the wheel\u2014we just need to apply the kind of frameworks we already use in other asset classes, with tweaks for crypto\u2019s nuances.\u201d<\/p>\n

As other jurisdictions like the EU move quickly with comprehensive legislation such as MiCA, the U.S. risks losing its edge. \u201cSpeed is critical because the world is moving at an unbelievable pace,\u201d Mulvihill warned. \u201cWe\u2019re already seeing areas of critical mass develop offshore, and those are very difficult to undo.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also pointed out that the current imbalance between crypto-native firms and traditional finance players could worsen without action. \u201cRight now, it\u2019s easier for crypto firms to buy their way into traditional financial products than it is for regulated TradFi firms to touch crypto,\u201d he said. \u201cThat asymmetry needs to be addressed. This bill helps shut down that imbalance and promotes fair competition.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ultimately, Mulvihill views the bill as a foundational piece of infrastructure\u2014not just for firms like his, but for the broader maturation of the industry. \u201cWhen firms understand the rules of the road, they\u2019re more likely to invest, build, and scale in the U.S.,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are many roles to play in this market, and it\u2019s refreshing to finally see those roles clearly defined,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In a move that could fundamentally reshape how digital assets are traded in the U.S., lawmakers are advancing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":127225,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[84,467,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-127224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-markets","tag-business","tag-markets","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127224"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127224\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127225"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}