CFTC Expands Relief for Passive Trading Software Providers

The relief turns on a functional distinction: routing orders without custody or discretion is now treated differently from brokering, which is what lets non-registered software sit between users and regulated venues. That matters most for wallet and app developers weighing whether to add derivatives or prediction-market access, since the registration burden was a deterrent. The open question is how far the agency will let the passive label stretch as more of these interfaces add features.