US Senators Working on Broad-Based Crypto Regulation – A bipartisan, broad-based regulatory framework for Bitcoin is being developed by two US senators. One of the senators stated; “The job we’re undertaking is going to be a very sophisticated and exhaustive assessment of the numerous facets of this industry.”
Senators Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) said during a Politico Live event on Thursday that they are collaborating on “a broad-based regulatory framework” for how the crypto industry should be managed.
Senator Gillibrand stated:
“We’ll be doing a really deep and in-depth assessment of the many components of this area.”
“Some will be regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, some by the Securities and Exchange Commission, while some we’ll have to look at more broadly, and we intend to have a regulatory commission that can look at these first-impression issues and make judgments and guidance,” she added.
Both senators are meeting with regulators, stakeholders, and industry experts so that all perspectives are heard in this legislative process, according to Gillibrand.
Senator Lummis was asked if the new crypto framework will give the CFTC a bigger role. She responded, “The answer is a resounding yes. Looking at ethereum and bitcoin in particular, it’s clear to me that they’re commodities.”
“It’s so fantastic to work on this with Senator Gillibrand because she’s on the Ag committee, which has jurisdiction over the CFTC,” Lummis said, noting that the CFTC will play a crucial role in crypto regulation. “The SEC will also play a significant role in this space,” she noted.
However, considering there are currently over 18,000 cryptocurrencies, the pro-bitcoin senator from Wyoming pointed out that not all of them are commodities. “As a result, we’ll continue to use the old Howey Test from the 1940s to help define what constitutes a security and what constitutes a commodity.”
Stablecoins and central bank digital currencies would also be addressed in the bill “to a lesser extent,” she added.
“Many of Senator Lummis’ goals and I are the same,” Senator Gillibrand said. We’d like to talk about issues like safety and soundness. We’d want to talk about consumer protection. We also aim to address market certainty.
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Senator Gillibrand said she and Senator Lummis would keep on working on the bill “over the next several weeks,” without specifying when it will be introduced or whether it will be passed this year.
“We want to keep listening to stakeholders to make sure that we can anticipate as many difficulties as possible with this legal framework.”
“I believe we will introduce it in the next several weeks and I believe we might be able to have a vote maybe by the end of the year,” the senator from New York said, noting that the process has been “very useful and beneficial” thus far.
Senator Lummis explained, “This bill would presumably be submitted in one piece but may possibly be separated into five or six pieces to address separate problems.” The proposal covers a wide range of concerns, including banking, privacy, consumer protection, taxation, and definitions. She came at this conclusion:
“I’m quite optimistic and we’re excited to get started on a piece of legislation.”
