Congress Financial News

United States Senate Agriculture Committee chair Debbie Stabenow and ranking member John Boozman introduced the Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act bill on Wednesday. The bill has been expected for several months. Like the Digital Commodities Exchange Act (DCEA) introduced into the House of Representatives by members of the House Agriculture Committee in April, the new bill enlarges the role of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The new bill is not the companion to the DCEA, however.

Lawmakers in the United States House of Representatives have reportedly pushed back the timeline for considering a bill addressing the potential risks of stablecoins.

The tech trade group Chamber of Progress called on members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives for regulatory clarity in the crypto space in an effort to prevent firms from leaving the country.

According to some United States lawmakers in the House Financial Services Committee, the lack of diversity in the financial technology space could be hurting many companies’ bottom lines.

Due to Celsius Network’s withdrawal suspension in mid-June, the very topic of crypto lending made its entryway to the acute issues list for the regulators. Last week, lawmakers and officials continued to raise the question of necessary action, with significant utterance belonging to one of the key European crypto skeptics, Christine Lagard.

A group of 14 United States senators and House representatives have signed a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency extolling what they believe are the benefits of crypto mining.

United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler said he’s worried that a proposed bill to create a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies could weaken investor protections in the traditional financial market.

Human rights activists from 20 countries have submitted an open letter to the United States Congress in support of a “responsible crypto policy” and praising Bitcoin and stablecoins as essential tools aiding democracy and freedom for tens of millions.

A leaked copy of a United States draft bill concerning cryptocurrency started doing the rounds on Twitter earlier on Tuesday. The 600-page copy of the leaked bill highlights some of the key areas of concern for regulators including decentralized finance (DeFi), stablecoins, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and crypto exchanges.

Retirement plans still largely remain at the periphery of both crypto adoption and the regulatory discussion. But last week, a major development emerged in this department. United States Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Tina Smith of Minnesota became concerned about Fidelity’s recent announcement of adding Bitcoin (BTC) to its clients’ 401(k) retirement investment menu. In a letter to the company’s CEO Abigail Johnson, the lawmakers expressed their uneasiness over a “conflict of interests” and the “significant risks of fraud, theft and loss,” requesting from Fidelity a detailed outline of risk mitigation actions. 

United States Senator Cynthia Lummis appeared on a livestream hosted by Axios on Tuesday to tease the highly awaited bill on cryptocurrency she is authoring. The Wyoming Republican said the bill will be introduced as “one big piece so people can see the big picture” and be broken down into five or six components for consideration by the appropriate congressional committees.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers in D.C. introduced an updated bill on April 28 to regulate cryptocurrency developers, dealers, exchanges, and stablecoin providers, bringing them under the regulatory control of the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

In terms of policy, Greg Tanaka calls himself a legislator for the digital age and possibly the most pro-crypto person running in this election cycle. Now a Palo Alto City Council member, he has set his sights on the United States House of Representatives seat for California’s 16th: the Silicon Valley district. In an interview with Cointelegraph, the self-described nerd exuded enthusiasm and spoke with an unwavering smile about crypto and the financial system.

Ranking member of the United States House Financial Services Committee Patrick McHenry and ranking member of the Subcommittee on Investor Protection, Entrepreneurship and Capital Markets Bill Huizenga sent a letter Monday to Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler to express their concerns about proposed SEC amendments to the Exchange Act of 1934 that would expand the definition of an exchange and the phrase “as a part of regular business.” The congressmen said the changes could stifle innovation in the digital asset ecosystem.

The European Parliament continued to keep crypto users and advocates at the edge of their seats last week as yet another piece of potentially harmful legislation — this time, a set of demanding data disclosure requirements for digital asset service providers — was rushed to a vote mere days after anear miss on banning proof-of-work-based cryptocurrencies. 

In a July 2021 interview, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren likened crypto regulation to the drug regulation initiatives of a century ago, which she claimed put an end to the sale of “snake oil” and laid the basis for the creation of the modern drug industry. This reflected her earlier statements about the digital currency market resembling the “Wild West,” which makes it a poor investment as well as an “environmental disaster.” With her latest bill in the Senate pipeline targeting Russian actors’ potential use of crypto to circumvent United States sanctions, it is fair to ask: Is the military conflict in Ukraine merely an excuse for Warren to act on her long-standing distaste for digital assets?

Per the request of the United States Congress, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), laid out four policy options to help policymakers implement blockchain technologies while enhancing benefits and mitigating challenges.

United States Senator from New York Kirsten Gillibrand revealed working with Senator Cynthia Lummis on a broad-based regulatory framework for the crypto industry on Thursday during a live event in Washington, D.C. 

El Salvador president Nayib Bukele reacted to the news that the recently proposed Accountability for Cryptocurrency in El Salvador Act (ACES) had passed the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee and will now head to a full Senate vote. The 40-year old national leader responded emotionally on Twitter:

Last week got off to an antsy start as the clause that many interpreted as a direct route to ban proof-of-work-(PoW)-based cryptocurrencies made a sudden comeback to the draft of the European Union’s key directive on digital assets. Many in the crypto policy space got immediate flashbacks to other instances of harmful last-minute additions to must-pass legislation days and hours before the vote. It all ended well, though, as the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs voted against the draft that contained the hostile language. Over in the United States, monetary policy kept growing more political, as evidenced by Sarah Bloom Raskin, President Joe Biden’s pick for the Federal Reserve’s vice chair for supervision, being forced to withdraw her nomination due to a Senate gridlock. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy took time off urgent matters of national defense to sign a bill granting digital assets legal status into law. Other big narratives of the week included crypto platforms’ expansion into the Gulf region, a slew of crypto-related statements and actions by members of the U.S. Congress and some favorable policy developments in Australia.

The Biden Administration has just passed an executive order furthering research into crypto assets in view of regulating them, but politicians within the ruling Democrat party remain deeply divided on digital currency.