Crypto Exchanges Continue Efforts to Loosen Senate Trading Rules

What Happened?

Major cryptocurrency exchanges, including Coinbase, Kraken, and Gemini, are lobbying lawmakers to weaken parts of a Senate crypto regulation bill. The bill would restrict trading of digital assets considered vulnerable to manipulation.

The companies specifically targeted language requiring exchanges to list only assets that are ‘not readily susceptible to manipulation.’ They argue that the rule could make it difficult to offer smaller, less actively traded tokens. Those tokens often have thinner trading volume and sharper price swings. This makes them harder to certify under standards traditionally used in commodity markets.

The debate is happening as Congress works on a major regulatory framework for the roughly $2.7 trillion crypto industry. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is expected to receive expanded authority over digital asset markets. Current drafts would bring crypto trading platforms under more direct federal oversight after years of operating in a largely fragmented regulatory environment.

Industry groups argue that the existing language was designed for traditional commodity derivatives markets and does not fit spot crypto trading. Critics, however, see the push as an attempt to weaken safeguards that prevent price manipulation and market abuse in highly volatile parts of the crypto market.

Why It Matters

This fight is getting to the center of what crypto regulation in the U.S. will look like as the industry moves fully under federal oversight. A major driver of public support for regulation by crypto companies is that these large firms want legitimacy, institutional investment, and clearer rules…

Our Target: $250 Million in Revenue in Two Years

We’re expanding globally to meet the licensing demand for EarnOS by smartphone manufacturers & OEM’s.

75% of our beta users are international, representing a massive and untapped opportunity to scale revenue by serving our existing user base.

Mode Mobile’s goal is to hit $365M in cumulative revenue within two years.*

Invest now at $0.50/share.

However, they also want regulations written in a way that preserves the business models and token ecosystems that fueled the industry’s rapid growth in the first place.

The tension is more apparent around smaller tokens, as many trade at relatively low volume, with limited liquidity and concentrated ownership. This makes prices easier to move artificially through coordinated buying, influencer promotion, or aggressive speculation.

Such conditions are already treated by traditional financial markets as warning signs for manipulation risk. This is why regulators have been hesitant to loosen the standards too much.

Crypto companies counter that smaller tokens are a major part of trading activity. They also argue that overly strict rules could push users toward offshore platforms with weaker oversight instead of regulated U.S. exchanges.

The fight also shows how far the industry has come politically, with major exchanges now helping shape the wording of federal legislation that could define the crypto market for years.

How It Affects You

Looser standards around which tokens can trade on major exchanges could keep access open to smaller, speculative assets that attract heavy retail trading. However, they could also collapse faster during volatility or coordinated selloffs.

The average crypto investor already operates in a market where hype can cause prices to fluctuate rapidly, especially for newer coins with a limited trading history.

Stronger listing standards would likely reduce the number of highly speculative assets available on major platforms. Weaker rules could preserve the fast-moving environment that helped crypto explode in popularity, but also produced repeated crashes and fraud scandals.

As crypto becomes more closely tied to investment funds, retirement accounts, and mainstream financial services, the stakes around regulation will only get higher. The bigger the industry gets, the harder it becomes for volatility, manipulation, or major failures to stay contained inside crypto markets alone.

*Disclaimer: Please read the offering circular and related risks at invest.modemobile.com. This is a paid advertisement for Mode Mobile’s Regulation A+ Offering.

Mode Mobile recently received their ticker reservation with Nasdaq ($MODE), indicating an intent to IPO in the next 24 months. An intent to IPO is no guarantee that an actual IPO will occur.

Pro forma, includes full year numbers of the businesses acquired in December 2025.