Original | Odaily Planet Daily (@OdailyChina)
Author | Ding Dang (@XiaMiPP)
In the eyes of most people, there seems to be an insurmountable gap between the crypto industry and the U.S. regulatory system.
On one side are the tech pioneers constantly pushing boundaries, who believe that code can rewrite financial rules and repeatedly test the limits of the system; on the other side are the regulators tasked with maintaining order and stability, who use caution and rules as a shield to protect the bottom line of the financial system.
Over the past decade, these two forces have sometimes clashed fiercely and sometimes reached brief compromises, always moving forward in a delicate tension.
But there are also some people who happen to stand right on this boundary line, such as Mark Wetjen.
He worked in the U.S. financial regulatory system for nearly two decades: from Policy Advisor to the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, to being nominated by President Obama as a Commissioner of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and even serving as Acting Chairman in 2014. At that time, Wall Street was still largely观望 or even skeptical of Bitcoin, while he had already led and facilitated the first formal hearing on digital assets in U.S. regulatory history within the CFTC. Looking back now, that openness and foresight towards emerging technology must have seemed particularly precious and lonely at the time.
More than a decade later, this former policy maker who once sat in the regulatory seat chose to turn around and step into the crypto world. Today, he has joined the crypto exchange Backpack as President of Backpack US, responsible for U.S. market operations management, regulatory communication, and business development.
And at this point in time, Backpack is also standing at a new critical juncture. The TGE of the platform's native token is expected to take place on March 23. As the token issuance approaches, Backpack is also明显 accelerating its global market compliance layout and has identified the U.S. market as the most important strategic focus for the next phase.
It is against this backdrop that Odaily Planet Daily had the privilege of conducting an in-depth and candid conversation with Mark Wetjen.
This conversation is not just the story of a veteran regulator's personal transition; it also serves as a mirror, reflecting the subtle yet profound changes in the U.S. regulatory environment and the crypto industry ecosystem over the past decade—from initial vigilance and alienation to increasing understanding, dialogue, and even a certain degree of mutual approach.
And Mark Wetjen has恰好 witnessed and participated in all of this.
From the Regulatory Seat to the Market Frontlines
In the development narrative of the crypto industry, regulators are often seen as an "external force." They often arrive late after the market has already formed, using rules to amend, restrict, or even correct the sparks of innovation that have already occurred.
But Mark Wetjen's trajectory is somewhat unique.
While many were still debating "whether this nascent digital asset Bitcoin is an internet bubble," he was already pondering a more practical question: if this asset can truly exist and continue to grow, how should the regulatory system face it?
If we仔细观察 Mark Wetjen's career path, we find that he has几乎 walked through the most important nodes of the modern financial system.
In Washington, he was a policy maker; at the CFTC, he was a regulator; at DTCC (The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation), he entered the core financial infrastructure of Wall Street and participated in shaping DTCC's early thinking on blockchain technology; later, he was hired to lead MIAX Futures and assisted in its foray into digital asset products. After that, he joined FTX US, responsible for policy and regulatory affairs. From rule drafter, to infrastructure guardian, to exchange leader, this path几乎串起了 the entire bloodstream of the financial market.
During his tenure at the CFTC, he approved the first Bitcoin derivative instrument listed and traded on a regulated U.S. platform and directed the General Counsel to assess whether Bitcoin was a commodity, thus determining its suitability as a reference asset for CFTC-regulated products. At that time, he saw a nascent market full of potential but structurally chaotic. He was already one of the earliest officials in Washington to publicly advocate for a regulatory framework for Bitcoin.
In the early years, Wetjen formed this view: those crypto companies that can truly develop long-term are precisely the ones that treat compliance capabilities as a competitive advantage. Because compliance not only means legal security but also broader market access, more institutional funds, and more stable long-term growth.
In Wetjen's view, Backpack is exactly such a company.
They are a team that truly places compliance at the core of product design, rather than treating it as an afterthought. This was also a key reason why he ultimately chose to join Backpack.
Now, as Backpack officially enters the U.S. market, he has been appointed President of Backpack US, responsible for U.S. market operations management, regulatory communication, and business development. Simply put, his task is单一: to help Backpack truly land in the world's most complex and important financial market.
And judging from today's results, this strategy is already taking shape. Backpack has already obtained regulatory approval in multiple jurisdictions: a VASP license in Dubai, MiFID II authorization in Europe, and the U.S. is its next most important market. In Wetjen's view, this is not accidental—it is a strategic choice made after careful consideration.
The Ultimate Answer to Exchange Competition: Trust
Over the past few years, the battle among crypto exchanges has seemed like an never-ending arms race: who has deeper liquidity, who iterates products quicker, who lists coins faster... These were once hailed as the king's way and indeed allowed some platforms to stand out in the short term.
However, when asked about the most core competitiveness of exchanges in the next decade, in Wetjen's view, these are not the final answer.
His answer is simple: trust.
In the crypto industry, everything comes and goes quickly. Today's领先 matching engine may be replaced by a more efficient architecture tomorrow; an exchange's proud liquidity pool may also be quickly replicated by competitors during market cycles. Even regulatory licenses, once seen as barriers, may no longer be the exclusive advantage of a few institutions as the industry gradually moves towards compliance.
But trust is different.
If an exchange can operate stably over the long term in a complex and changing regulatory environment and always put user asset safety first, then this trust will continuously沉淀 over time, eventually becoming the most difficult to replicate moat.
In Wetjen's view, the role played by crypto trading platforms in the future is far more than just a simple trading matching system.
It is more like a bridge. One end connects the crypto-native world, and the other end connects the traditional financial system, allowing ordinary users and institutional investors to enter this new financial network in a compliant and secure manner.
It is precisely for this reason that he chose to join Backpack. "I believe this team is doing the right thing at the right time," Wetjen said.
If five years from now, when people think of the most compliant, trustworthy, and product-innovative crypto trading platform, the first name that comes to mind is Backpack, then for him, this experiment might already be a success.
In a sense, this is also a natural continuation of his career.
Ten years ago, he was in a Washington conference room discussing how to regulate Bitcoin.
Ten years later, he is participating in building a crypto financial infrastructure that can be accepted by the regulatory system.
Some people are builders of the crypto world, some are gatekeepers of the regulatory system. And people like Mark Wetjen are trying to build a bridge between the two.
