28 Apr 2020 Arjun Agarwal
The U.S. Congress Considers 32 Blockchain And Crypto Proposals In 2019-2020
The world of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology seems to have found another niche of supporters. This time, however, the backers of crypto and blockchain include the U.S. Senators and Members in the House of Representatives. Put together, legislators proposed 32 bills for consideration in the 116th Congress.
The bills may be a direct effect of the interest Facebook’s Libra stablecoin project created over the past couple of years. The ongoing regulatory clarity campaign, combined with the idea of a digital representation of the U.S. dollar, further intensifies the interest in the Congress.
Crypto-related foundation Value Technology published a report, stating that 41% of the bills are associated with regulatory clarifications, as well as clearly defining blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. Thirty-seven percent of the proposals, however, are aimed at the use of cryptocurrencies and the underlying technology against terrorism, human and sex trafficking, as well as money laundering. 16% of the bills are promoting the use of blockchain technology from the U.S. government. A mere 6% cut remains for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), as well as the idea of developing a digital dollar. One of the bills even includes Venezuela’s use case of their own oil-backed cryptocurrency – Petro, to help stabilize its economy.
Despite being spread in a vast spectrum of interest, one of the bills stands out. The “Defending American Security From Kremlin Aggression Act” bill, proposed by Senator Lindsey Graham, actually “seeks to promote cross-border activities to protect financial institutions and exchanges from crypto crimes.”
In the meantime, the biggest concern among legislators is the lack of regulatory clarity and proper tax treatment of cryptocurrencies. Facebook’s Libra project acted as a catalyst for intense political debate, followed by the “Managed Securities Are Stablecoins Act”, which made Facebook reconsider its plans to back its stablecoin with a basket of cryptocurrencies.
Amid the battle for regulatory consent, the Binance-backed derivatives exchange platform FTX received the “thumbs up”, after receiving registration from various U.S. monetary regulators. The list of licensers include Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and the Money Services Business (MSB), with licensing as a money transmitter (MTL) from several states underway.
“To be fully functional, FTX has to comply with a vast array of both financial and consumer protection laws. The primary concerns of legislators are controlling anti-money laundering activities,” the company stated.
FTX US is currently in a beta test phase, as the possible launch is rumored to take place in May.
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