Joint Request Targets Title VII Ambiguities
The SEC and CFTC issued a joint request for public comment on potential opportunities to further update, clarify, and harmonize certain derivatives product definitions and interpretive issues. The release, numbered 2026-57, was dated June 18, 2026.
Input gathered will feed the agencies' continuing review of whether today's definitions, interpretations, and jurisdictional lines still fit how markets, products, and trading have evolved.
Highlights
- The SEC and CFTC issued a joint request for public comment on potential opportunities to further update, clarify, and harmonize certain derivatives product definitions and interpretive issues.
- The release was dated June 18, 2026 and numbered 2026-57.
- Definitional questions around swaps and security-based swaps make the list, among them how far certain exclusions from the swap definition extend.
- Commenters get 60 days from Federal Register publication to weigh in.
Scope of the Request
How swaps and security-based swaps are defined, and how broadly the exclusions apply, features among the covered questions.
A 60-day response window opens once the request appears in the Federal Register.
Regulators Comment
The joint request was billed as a chance to clear up long-running Title VII ambiguities said to have held back fair competition and responsible innovation.
Definitional issues under Title VII, event-based products included, were described as overdue for clarification. Good-faith cooperation, the argument went, can produce an even field letting incumbents and newcomers compete and innovate equally, whichever agency they register with.
What Comes Next
The comment period will close 60 days after the request is published in the Federal Register, giving market participants time to weigh in on the proposed clarifications.