The drive by some members of the U.S. House of Representatives to remove regulatory uncertainty around digital assets has gained support in the Senate. The bill could be drafted by the end of May, The Block reports.
In the House, the initiative is pushed by Patrick McHenry, chair of the Financial Services Committee, and Glenn Thompson, who chairs the Agriculture Committee. They have begun coordinating their efforts with Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Cynthia Lummis, the latter of whom sits on the Senate Banking Committee.
It is envisaged that the new rules structuring the digital assets market will bring its operation in line with U.S. securities and commodities laws.
Negotiations are taking place against a backdrop of stringent enforcement actions by the SEC and the CFTC against industry participants.
The publication notes that the development of cryptocurrency regulation legislation was part of the Biden administration’s program, presented in 2022.
The lawmakers are weighing key principles. They aim to reach bipartisan consensus and pass the digital assets bill at the same time as the legislation regulating stablecoins.
The Block noted that a bipartisan document could face pushback from Senate Banking Committee Chair Sherrod Brown. In February 2023, he questioned the “real role” of cryptocurrencies in the financial system and called for an “aggressive SEC”, whose head Gary Gensler he trusts.
The chair of the Commission stated support for the recommendations of the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets regarding stablecoins. Gensler agreed to back the proposed bill with the caveat that it should not undermine capital markets worth $100 trillion.
Earlier, Ohio Republican Warren Davidson in the House of Representatives promised to introduce a bill proposing Gary Gensler’s resignation from his post as head of the agency.
Recently, the U.S. Congress held the first hearing on the bill regulating stablecoins.