The Digital Commodity Intermediaries Act creates a new federal regulatory framework for digital assets like cryptocurrencies. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) will now regulate companies that buy, sell, and trade digital commodities—which are defined as fungible digital assets recorded on blockchain that can be transferred directly between people without needing a middleman. This includes most cryptocurrencies and tokens, though it excludes things like stablecoins used for payments, securities, NFTs, and assets backed by real-world commodities.

The law establishes three main types of regulated entities: digital commodity brokers (who handle transactions for regular customers), digital commodity dealers (who trade directly with customers), and digital commodity exchanges (trading platforms). Anyone working for these companies in a sales or supervisory role must be registered and follow CFTC rules. The law also creates standards for digital asset custodians—companies that hold and safeguard cryptocurrencies for others—requiring them to meet strict supervision and security requirements.

The CFTC and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will work together to write detailed rules and prevent overlapping regulations for companies that deal with both digital assets and traditional securities. The law specifically protects truly decentralized systems—those run by transparent, rules-based governance where no single person or group controls them—from being treated as regulated intermediaries. Banks and payment processors making simple transactions won't be caught by these rules.