The U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee has released the long-awaited discussion draft of the cryptocurrency market structure legislation, bringing Congress closer to passing legislation that outlines the regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency industry.
Republican Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman and Democratic Senator Cory Booker released the draft on Monday, which includes bracketed annotations indicating parts of the bill that lawmakers are still negotiating.
The bill aims to outline the boundaries of the regulatory powers of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over cryptocurrencies. Only Congress can set the regulatory boundaries for these agencies, which have both issued joint guidance to companies regarding cryptocurrencies in the context of the Trump administration's push for deregulation.
"The CFTC is the appropriate agency to regulate spot digital commodity trading, and it is crucial to establish clear rules for the emerging crypto market while protecting consumers," Boozman stated.
Booker noted that the discussion draft "will provide the CFTC with new powers to regulate the spot market for digital commodities, create new protections for retail customers, and ensure that the agency has the personnel and resources needed to oversee this growing market."
The draft outlines common cryptocurrency terms such as "blockchain," "decentralized finance," and decentralized autonomous organizations, and how they will be regulated under the Commodity Exchange Act.
Most of the bill's content is in brackets, indicating that changes may occur. A portion of the text refers to "minority views" held by Democrats on the committee, who believe that the Agriculture Committee lacks jurisdiction over certain aspects and are interested in collaborating with the Senate Banking Committee to "address issues related to non-controlling blockchain developers and blockchain service providers."
The Agriculture Committee has jurisdiction over the CFTC, while the Senate Banking Committee is leading the portions of the bill related to securities law, as it oversees the SEC.
Republicans on the Banking Committee released a discussion draft of the portions they are responsible for in July and indicated that it would be combined with the CLARITY Act. The CLARITY Act is a bill passed by the House in July that gives the CFTC a central role in regulating cryptocurrencies.
Ji Hun Kim, CEO of the crypto advocacy organization Crypto Council for Innovation, stated that the release of the bill draft "marks a meaningful positive step forward in establishing a comprehensive and applicable market structure framework for digital commodities in the U.S."
Mason Lynaugh, community director of Coinbase's lobbying arm Stand with Crypto, remarked that the bill is "an important step toward formally establishing the common-sense regulatory framework that the crypto industry has long advocated for."
"The Senate must act swiftly and prudently to pass market structure legislation," he added. "Crypto advocates across the country are counting on their elected officials to establish clear rules of the road."
Related: Former UK MP Lisa Cameron: UK and US consider launching cryptocurrency regulatory sandbox after talks
Original text: “Senate Committee Releases Cryptocurrency Market Structure Bill Draft”
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