Rostin Behnam (born February 16, 1978) is an American lawyer and government official who served as the 15th chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) from 2021 to 2025.

He has also worked on a proprietary equities trading desk, practiced law in New York City and with the Bureau of Securities in the state of New Jersey’s Office of Attorney General, and co-founded a short-lived regional commuter airline.

Behnam’s terms as CFTC Commissioner and chairman coincided with a historical period of growth and innovation in the derivatives industry sparked by the rapid development and adoption of decentralized finance (DeFi).

His time at the CFTC also straddled the COVID-19 pandemic, which along with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, severe and catastrophic weather events, surging inflation, and related and responsive monetary policy, corresponded with record level volatility in the global commodity markets throughout the early 2020s.

He is a leading advocate for federal regulation of the digital asset markets, calling on the White House for leadership[5] and testifying before Congress on the subject.

[7] Behnam’s major responsibilities included advising Senator Stabenow on the implementation of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and related matters affecting the Treasury Department, the U.S. prudential regulators[8] (safety and soundness), and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

[19] Behnam followed its release with testimony before the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis[20] and presentations in other venues focused on climate-related market risk and incorporating sustainability resilience into U.S. and global financial systems.