Senator Patrick Toomey, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, has issued a call for feedback regarding legislation that impacts cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. Toomey has been supportive of financial innovation and more recently had attempted to mitigate the impact of the Infrastructure legislation that targeted cryptocurrency to the detriment of the industry.
In a public statement, Senator Toomey said he intends to use the responses in forming legislation that clarifies ambiguity around how existing laws, especially in the tax and securities realms, may apply to cryptocurrencies.
Senator Toomey stated:
“Rather than trying to ignore or suppress cryptocurrency and related technologies, regulators and legislators alike need to recognize that open, public networks are here to stay. Our laws and regulations must adapt to these developments. Not only might cryptocurrency and blockchain technologies be as revolutionary as the internet, they also have the potential to build wealth and financial independence for individuals who are empowered to engage in financial transactions directly with each other, free from oft-costly middlemen. That’s why it’s important Congress gets this right and ensures the United States remains at the forefront of cryptocurrency and fintech innovation. I am hopeful the broad array of legislative proposals I receive will help in crafting thoughtful legislation.”
The White House, as well as Treasury, has emerged as an advocate for more stringent criteria regarding crypto innovation that has been deemed by industry insiders as hobbling this sector of Fintech, Meanwhile, there may be sufficient bipartisan support to address regulatory challenges to the emerging crypto-asset sector.
The Senate Banking Committee will accept feedback from today until Monday, September 27, 2021. The Senator requests the following from each proposal:
- A brief description of the proposal and how it will encourage the growth of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology in the United States;
- Proposed legislative language; and
- Other background material as appropriate.
Potential topics that proposals should address, but are not limited to:
- Securities implications of cryptocurrencies
- Payments and money transmission supervision
- Stablecoins
- Cryptocurrency exchanges
- Custody regulation
- Banking authorities
- Privacy, due process, investor, and consumer protection
- Decentralized finance (DeFi)
- Removing existing regulatory ambiguities related to cryptocurrency
- Clearly defined goals for appropriate regulations
Interested persons should submit electronic copies of their proposals to Committee staff at submissions@banking.senate.gov. All proposals will be published at a future date.