House Of Reps To Consider Two Crypto Bills This Week

The House of Representatives will consider two pieces of legislation this week which could bolster the crypto industry. The first, H.R. 4763, would take some regulatory powers away from the Securities and Exchange Commission by reclassifying crypto as a commodity rather than a security. The second, H.R. 5403, would bar the Federal Reserve from issuing its own digital currency.

• Bloomberg notes: "SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has said almost all crypto tokens are securities. During his tenure, the SEC has levied a slew of enforcement actions against crypto firms for issuing or allowing users to trade unregistered securities."
• Ranking Democrat of the Financial Services Committee, Rep Maxine Waters (D-CA), said “there is simply no good reason to throw all of that away [longstanding financial regulation] in favor of a complicated new framework that caters to a single industry that refuses to follow the rules."
• Democrats said in the committee report: “By shifting a substantial portion of the digital assets market to the commodities regime, the bill removes several critical protections that apply to securities and not commodities.”
• Politico notes: “Watch closely to see whether House Democratic leaders whip against these: The backdrop is growing Democratic dismay with the Biden administration’s tough-on-crypto stance, which could pave the path for industry friendly regulation if Trump wins in November.”