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Bart Chilton has died. He was 58.
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The former U.S. CFTC commissioner was known for calling for greater regulation of cryptocurrencies and derivatives.
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A family member told CNBC the cause of Chilton's death was complications from pancreatic cancer.
Bart Chilton, a former commissioner of the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission and advocate for cryptocurrency regulation, has died.
A family member told CNBC the cause of Chilton's death was complications from pancreatic cancer. He was 58.
Chilton was a frequent guest on CNBC and wrote for CNBC's website . Most recently, he hosted the show "Boom Bust" for television's RT America channel.
Chilton worked at the CFTC from 2007 to 2014. He was nominated to a position there by President George W. Bush and was renominated by President Barack Obama .
There, he headed the Energy and Environmental Advisory Committee and the Global Markets Advisory Committee. His years at the CFTC were remembered for his criticism of high-frequency trading , whose traders he called "cheetahs."
High-frequency trading refers to the use of computer programs to move in and out of positions very quickly — sometimes in fractions of a second.
In recent months, Chilton wrote for Forbes on topics ranging from cryptocurrencies to financial regulation.
CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo, in a Twitter post on Sunday, said Chilton's death was "sad news for all of us."
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