In 2008, an anonymous person or group of people known only as “Satoshi Nakamoto” launched a Document now seminal, Bitcoin’s white paper, introducing a system equal to equal to the exchange value without intermediaries.
With this revolutionary concept, the idea of a “digital asset” was born. Shortly after, developers and businessmen expanded in this concept, developing systems where the value was exchanged not only for their own good, but also for digital services and products.
During the last decade, innovators have created decentralized networks without permission for computer services, file storage, asset exchange, cellular coverage, Wi-Fi connectivity, mapping tools, loan services and more. Because digital assets can be used for the services that anyone can offer and that anyone can access, use cases, both financial and non -financial, are potentially endless.
Despite this promise, these networks have courted criticism. The administration of Biden-Harris tried to block this innovative advance through a relentless campaign of application demands and actions without providing regulatory clarity the ecosystem of digital assets and its innovators and users so desperately necessary.
The Bag and Securities Commission (SEC) could not clarify how existing securities laws apply and, more importantly, they do not apply to digital asset transactions. This lack of regulatory clarity stifled the digital asset ecosystem, pushing the growth of the United States to jurisdictions that have established clear rules of the road.
To address these failures, Congress began to explore ways to modernize the regulatory structure to accommodate the unique characteristics of digital assets and how they could be used in our financial system. These efforts culminated in a series of bills aimed at clarifying how digital assets could be used in the financial system, ensuring investor protection and promoting innovation.
In the 118th Congress, the Financial Services and Agriculture Committees of the House of Representatives launched a historical joint effort to address the regulation of digital assets. This led to the first approval of the structure legislation of the market of bipartisan digital assets in a Congress Chamber. This collaboration allowed the Congress to address the long data challenges in the ecosystem and lay the foundations for an adequate framework for the leadership of President Trump.
This Congress, both the Chamber and the Senate, are committed to creating a clear path for the digital asset ecosystem. As we advance, it is crucial that the frame is balanced and covered with iron for the future. To achieve this, we have established principles for digital asset legislation.
Six principles
First, legislation must promote innovation. We seek to protect opportunities for innovators to create and use digital assets, while ensuring that users can legally carry out transactions between them.
Second, the legislation must provide clarity for the classification of assets. Digital asset users must clearly understand the nature of their holdings, including whether they qualify as values or non -security.
Third, the legislation must encode a framework for the issuance of new digital assets. The framework must allow the emitters to raise capital by selling new digital assets under the jurisdiction of the SEC. You should protect retail investors and demand developers to disclose relevant information to help users understand the unique characteristics of digital asset networks.
Fourth, the legislation must establish the regulation of exchanges and intermediaries of the spot market. Centralized and intermediary custody exchanges that facilitate transactions with digital assets without security must meet similar requirements to other financial companies.
The Congress must provide the Basic Products Trade Commission (CFTC) to impose the requirements on these entities necessary to protect customers, limit conflicts of interest, guarantee the proper execution of customer orders and provide disseminations.
Fifth, the legislation must establish the best practices for the protection of customer assets. Entities recorded in the SEC or CFTC must be obliged to segregate customer funds and keep them with qualified custodians. Customer funds must also be protected during bankruptcy.
Sixth, and finally, legislation must protect innovative projects and decentralized activities. Congress must ensure that decentralized protocols, which propose different risks and benefits, are not subject to regulations designed for centralized and custody companies. By safeguarding decentralized activities, Congress must also protect the right of an individual to self -conflict their digital assets.
We hope that both committees continue our legislative work together to comply with President Trump’s request to make the “cryptographic capital of the planet”. In May, our committees will organize our second joint audience to discuss the structure legislation of the digital asset market.
Our goal is to provide very necessary regulatory clarity to this industry in rapid evolution, ensuring that the United States continues to lead in the configuration of the future of digital finances.
