Payward's Ben Gray on GENIUS Rules & Regulation After Clarity

In this week’s CF Benchmarks live X Space, recorded October 22, 2026, Head of Research Gabe Selby, CFA is joined by Kraken Chief Economist Thomas Perfumo, CFA, Research Analyst Mark Pilipczuk and special guest Ben Gray, Kraken’s Chief Legal Officer, for a discussion spanning macro, markets and regulation. Bitcoin traded near $82,000 as a tech-led, risk-off rotation hit equities, with the 10-year Treasury yield near 5% and Brent crude above $110. Spot Bitcoin ETF inflows continued, yet leverage and macro headlines kept pressure on price. The panel then turns to the regulatory calendar. The OCC finalized the first federal rule under the GENIUS Act on October 21, and the Senate’s September 15 cloture vote on the CLARITY Act failed 49 to 50. Ben explains what both mean for stablecoin rewards, trust charters and a market structure framework now being written by agencies rather than Congress. Chapters: 00:00 Intro & Welcome 02:41 Meet Ben Gray: From Federal Regulator to Kraken CLO 07:35 Bitcoin Near $82K: Tech Rotation & the ETF Flow Divergence 18:30 The OCC Finalizes Its First GENIUS Act Rule 21:17 Stablecoin Rewards: How Regulators Will Judge Yield 26:40 Banks vs. Stablecoins: Lobbying & the ICBA Lawsuit 35:28 Rules Without Congress: What the SEC & CFTC Can Deliver 39:02 Five-Year Exemptions & the SEC to CFTC Handoff 43:17 How Sticky Is Agency Rulemaking? 46:00 The SEC Innovation Exemption: Scope & Early Uptake 48:50 Week Ahead: FOMC, Big Tech Earnings & PCE 54:43 Ben’s Watchlist: Midterms & the CFTC’s Exchange Framework