For Congressman Patrick McHenry, the U.S. House Financial Services Committee is the body that should regulate cryptocurrencies, not entities like the SEC or CFTC.
US Congressman Patrick McHenry has written a letter to the chairwoman of the United States House of Representatives Financial Services Committee, Maxine Waters, urging the committee to define the future of cryptocurrencies, so as not to leave the regulation of the crypto industry in the hands of agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which seem to be focused only on compliance and not on innovation.
According to Congressman McHenry, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 2005 and the top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee, Cryptocurrencies must enjoy an appropriate regulatory environment, which allows for its healthy growth and development in the country. McHenry points out that the Financial Services Committee is the one that must examine and indicate the regulation of cryptocurrencies, in order to guarantee that the policies pursued by Congress encourage innovation and development in the United States.
“Digital assets hold great promise”, the congressman said, while pointing out the potential of cryptocurrencies as an alternative to address the existing wealth gaps in the country, in completely new and innovative ways.
Over the past 13 years, advances in new technologies and their massive adoption and growth have led cryptocurrencies to emerge from obscurity and enter the mainstream, taking over various areas of society. In his letter, McHenry explained that the disruptive potential of cryptocurrencies will transform the economy, current payment systems, and drive innovation in the country, positioning the United States as a global financial and technological leader.
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Lawmakers and cryptocurrencies
Patrick McHenry believes that legislators and policymakers are the ones in charge of regulating cryptocurrencies and defining their future in the United States. Therefore, the Financial Services Committee should be the one to examine the regulation of cryptocurrency trading and exchange platforms and not the SEC or the CFTC; which do not currently have jurisdiction over these platforms in the country. The House Financial Services Committee is responsible for overseeing the entire financial services industry, including securities, insurance, the banking sector, and housing industries in the country.
“This Committee will have to do its job to properly categorize these assets and determine the rules that will govern their use.”
McHenry called on Waters, as the Committee's leader, to work together to create opportunities that allow these new technologies to flourish in the country, without stifling them in their early stages and without neglecting transparency and compliance.
Regulatory clarity
The US congressman said that the regulatory uncertainty and confusion currently experienced in the country has been generated by the “inconsistent treatment” that regulatory bodies have given to the industry. “While Chairs Benham and Gensler have been very vocal, neither the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) nor the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) positions on digital assets are based on a statute”, McHenry said.
In this way, the congressman clarifies that the debate generated among financial regulators to control the cryptocurrency industry has been misplaced and is beginning to harm innovation in the country.
The SEC has been focused in regulating cryptocurrency exchange platforms, the DeFi and stablecoins, while the CFTC wants to enforce commodity laws within the crypto market. As reported According to this media, Dawn Stump, CFTC commissioner, assured at the end of August that the regulation of cryptocurrencies and digital assets corresponds to the CFTC as the securities regulatory body.
New Fed policies
McHenry's statements come at a time of great uncertainty for the crypto industry due to the new and aggressive policies announced by the Federal Reserve (FED) to raise interest rates and recover the US economy. The concerns caused in investors have caused great volatility in the cryptocurrency market, which experienced a massive drop of more than 20% in recent days. However, at the time of writing, the price of Bitcoin is trading above $36.400 per unit.
Continue reading: The crypto market begins to recover after the 16% drop over the weekend
