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Douglas E. Arend

Doug Arend focuses his practice on commodity futures, derivatives and securities, with an emphasis on managed funds. He represents registered and exempt investment advisers, commodity pools and hedge funds, traditional proprietary trading firms, introducing brokers, futures commission merchants and broker-dealers. Doug has significant experience advising funded-trader proprietary trading firms regarding a wide variety of structuring and regulatory matters. He concentrates on complex transactional and regulatory matters, including public and private offerings, fund formation, business structuring, registration and compliance. His experience includes regulatory matters involving designated contract markets and derivatives clearing organizations, particularly in the area of prediction markets offering event contracts.

On March 17, 2026, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued an interpretive release addressing the application of the federal securities laws to crypto assets and related transactions. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission joined the interpretation and indicated it will administer the Commodity Exchange Act consistent with the SEC’s approach, reflecting a coordinated regulatory position across the two agencies.
Continue Reading SEC Clarifies Status of Crypto Assets Under Federal Securities Laws, Signals Potential Exemptive and Safe Harbor Framework

Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Acting Chairman Caroline Pham, currently the only CFTC Commissioner of the five-member commission, announced on Dec. 4, 2025, that spot trading in cryptocurrency products will

Continue Reading CFTC Opens Door to Spot Crypto Trading on Regulated Exchanges