Senate Democrats press CFTC over Chicago staff cuts

Five Democratic senators are demanding clarity from the nation’s top derivatives regulator after learning that its enforcement team in Chicago may be drastically reduced.

In a letter released Thursday (Feb. 26) to Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Michael Selig, Senators Richard J. Durbin, Amy Klobuchar, Cory A. Booker, Raphael Warnock and Adam B. Schiff said they were « deeply concerned » that the agency’s Central Regional Office in Chicago had shrunk from 20 executive attorneys to none.

They warned that if those numbers were true, the recall would undermine one of the CFTC’s most critical enforcement centers.

Congress created the CFTC in 1974 to oversee U.S. derivatives markets. Its enforcement division prosecutes cases involving fraud, insider trading, market manipulation and false reporting under the Commodity Exchange Act. For years, the Chicago office has been at the heart of these efforts, handling complex investigations related to the futures, commodities and, more recently, crypto markets.

The team has reportedly helped achieve some of the agency’s most impressive results. In 2023, the CFTC won a $2.7 billion penalty against Binance along with a $150 million civil penalty against its CEO. A year later, he ordered the collapsed crypto exchange FTX to pay $12.7 billion in compensation to victims. Senators pointed to those results as evidence that experienced attorneys matter.

Lawmakers push for details on CFTC staff in Chicago

According to the letter, departures, retirements and internal transfers have left the Chicago judicial branch without any attorneys. Lawmakers said the total number of staff in the enforcement department has dropped by at least 25 percent, and possibly more.

The drop in staff coincided with a sharp drop in new cases. In fiscal year 2025, the CFTC brought 13 enforcement actions and recovered less than $10 million. This is in stark contrast to 58 actions that brought in $17.1 billion in fiscal year 2024 and 96 actions that brought in $4.3 billion in fiscal year 2023.

The senators also got a stark warning from a former CFTC attorney who said, « If I were any other person, I’d be starting a crypto scam right now because there are no cops on the beat. » Regardless of whether one agrees with this characterization, they write, it reiterates concerns about a reduced law enforcement presence.

At his confirmation hearing before the Senate Agriculture, Food and Forestry Committee, Selig described the CFTC as a « beat cop » and said it’s « vital » that the agency has the resources it needs to do its job.

His tenure has already drawn attention beyond the staff. The agency recently withdrew a proposed ban on certain event-based contracts related to prediction markets, including political races. Selig also faced sharp questions from senators about sports betting markets and whether they fall under the CFTC’s purview. The committee took into account litigation involving prediction market operator Kalshi, including issues involving Nevada regulators, while other senators pushed for a crackdown on contracts linked to events such as deaths.

Against that backdrop, the five Democrats are asking how many law enforcement attorneys are stationed in each regional office, whether vacancies in Chicago will be filled and when, how current staffing compares to fiscal year 2024 levels and whether additional funding has been requested or resources redirected to maintain the law enforcement force.

They gave Selig until March 12, 2026 to respond, saying he is in a unique position to restore the enforcement department and protect the integrity of the market.

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