Two key positions in U.S. cryptocurrency oversight are advancing this week in the Senate as the chamber establishes a list of dozens of nominees it will consider for confirmation all at once, including Mike Selig as chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Travis Hill as chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune on Tuesday began a process known as cloture in which the Senate prepares a vote to approve the 60-member threshold normally required there. Its resolution includes candidates for more than 80 federal positions (in some cases, like Selig’s, one person for two roles). The eventual closure vote is expected to take place on Thursday.
At a time when the CFTC is poised to take a leadership role in overseeing cryptocurrencies, Selig is set to be confirmed for a position on the commission and for the presidency. Because he would replace acting Chairwoman Caroline Pham, who is expected to leave the agency when she arrives, he will be the sole member of what should be a five-person commission, but the White House has not yet moved to offer any colleagues.
The US derivatives regulator has already been enforcing a number of crypto policies, but if the Senate finally completes its legislation on crypto market structure, the agency would also be granted explicit authorities over crypto markets.
At the FDIC, which will regulate stablecoin issuers and has a significant impact on how the cryptocurrency industry is banked, Hill has already been leading the agency as acting chairman. In that role, he has adopted a cryptocurrency-friendly stance.
“We undid the policy of the last few years,” he told lawmakers at a Dec. 2 hearing of the House Financial Services Committee, referring to a Biden administration-era stance in which banking regulators told bankers they needed approval from government supervisors before engaging in new crypto activities. “Banks are expected to manage safety and soundness risk, but are otherwise not prohibited from providing services to those industries.”
Hill has also played a leading role in addressing cryptocurrency industry complaints about so-called “de-banking” in which banks severed relationships with cryptocurrency companies and their executives, a situation that industry experts and many of her Republican legislative allies say was encouraged by regulatory policy.
