The US House Financial Services Committee and the House Agriculture Committee are set to introduce comprehensive legislation to oversee the cryptocurrency sector in the next two months.
Before unveiling the new bill, the two committees will hold a joint public hearing, which is scheduled to begin in May, said Representative Patrick McHenry, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. Said During the Consensus 2023 conference.
The lawmaker also claimed that the bill could be signed by President Joe Biden in the next 12 months.
“What we plan to do in the next couple of months is have the report out,” McHenry said.
He noted that although crafting some new legislation into existence is a challenge, the committee plans to announce a bill that addresses hard-to-fix issues, including the securities and commodities regime.
The bipartisan topic is intended to be addressed before the 2024 election, said Senator Cynthia Lummis, another panelist during the session.
Lummis also shared that if the House moves forward on crypto first, it will improve the Senate’s chances of getting the legislation through first.
Despite the progress of several bills on Capitol Hill in the past year, the US Congress has been unable to pass comprehensive legislation on crypto.
This month, the House Financial Services Committee introduced another bill aimed at regulating stablecoins, which has yet to find any notable bipartisan support.
Meanwhile, jurisdictions such as the European Union have already allowed Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) Law, it is the first major jurisdiction in the world to introduce a comprehensive crypto law.
Regulators in Japan and the United Arab Emirates have followed suit and moved to regulate the space. hong kong And the UK is re-thinking its approach to crypto.
US Intensifies Efforts To Regulate Crypto After FTX Collapse
The recent collapse of FTX and a few other high-profile digital asset firms has put pressure on lawmakers to introduce legislation that provides adequate guidance and protections for the industry.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission, the two largest financial regulators in the US, have launched an aggressive crackdown on the crypto industry.
CFTC recently announced that it is suing Binance and founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao over allegations that the crypto exchange knowingly offered unregistered crypto derivative products in the US in violation of the law.
Similarly, the SEC has sent a “Wells Notice” to Coinbase, threatening legal action to the crypto exchange regarding some of its listed digital assets, its staking services Coinbase Earn, Coinbase Prime, and Coinbase Wallet.
McHenry also acknowledged crypto’s recent role in the US banking crisis, which has strained the industry’s banking relations.
“We have to fix this problem, we have to provide certainty that you can bank safely and soundly,” he said. “This is a great example of why Congress should legislate and provide clarity.”
The senator is also pushing for clearer regulatory rules.
Last week, McHenry’s committee declined to provide adequate guidance to SEC Chairman Gary Gensler on whether ether (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, was a security.