Republicans’ Leadership Squabbles Delayed U.S. Crypto Bills Until 2024, Key Lawmakers Say

After
months
of
hoping
U.S.
crypto
legislation
could
win
House
of
Representatives
approval
this
year,
lawmakers
doing
much
of
the
behind-the-scenes
work
are
looking
to
2024
as
the
time
when
digital
assets
bills
may
get
passed
by
that
Republican-controlled
chamber
though
the
efforts
still
face
an
uphill
climb
in
the
Senate
where
Democrats
have
the
reins.

U.S.
Rep.
French
Hill
(R-Ark.),
the
chairman
of
the
House
Financial
Services
Committee’s
subcommittee
that
focuses
on
digital
assets,
said
the
House’s
consideration
of
two
major
crypto
bills
–
one
to
regulate
U.S.
stablecoin
issuers
and
another
to
form
a
broad
system
of
rules
for
crypto
markets
–
has
likely
shifted
into
“early
2024.”

The
House
Republicans’
recent
fight
over
installing
a
new
speaker
–
which
ensnared
key
crypto
negotiator
Rep.
Patrick
McHenry
(R-N.C.)
as
stand-in
speaker
for
a
time
–
delayed
the
floor
time
lawmakers
needed
for
the
legislation,
Hill
said
at
a
Blockchain
Association
event
in
Washington
on
Thursday.

“That,
I
think,
set
us
back
a
little
bit,”
echoed
Sen.
Cynthia
Lummis
(R-Wyo.)
at
the
same
event.
Lummis,
who
has
been
pressing
her
own
wide-ranging
crypto
legislation
in
the
Senate,
also
suggested
that
the
stablecoin
bill,
specifically,
will
make
more
progress
next
year.
“That
is
an
area
that
could
come
early
in
2024.”Rep.
Jim
Himes
(D-Conn.),
who
has
also
occupied
a
leading
role
in
the
House
negotiations
for
both
bills
as
the
committee’s
top
Democrat
Rep.
Maxine
Waters
(D-Calif.)
withdrew
support,
suggested
the
industry
needs
to
counter
what
House
Democrats
are
hearing
from
outside
groups
and
U.S.
Securities
and
Exchange
Commission
Chair
Gary
Gensler
–
a
dedicated
critic
of
the
industry.

He
was
among
a
handful
of
Democrats
on
the
House
Financial
Services
Committee
to
buck
his
party’s
ranking
member
on
the
committee
to
favor
both
crypto
bills
this
year.
Waters
has
since
indicated
she’s
still
open
to
moving
forward
on
legislation,
and
Himes
said
Thursday
that
if
Waters
gets
on
board
and
the
overall
House
approves
a
bill,
“a
Democratic
Senate
sits
up
and
takes
notice.”

“On
the
other
side
of
the
Capitol,
the
weather
is
uglier,”
Himes
said
of
the
crypto
views
of
some
Senate
Democrats,
including
Sen.
Sherrod
Brown
(D-Ohio),
who
runs
the
Senate
Banking
Committee.
“You
could
see
a
path,
but
I
think
it
probably
starts
with
a
strong
bipartisan
vote”
in
the
House,
Himes
said.

Brown’s
banking
committee
“has
been
a
tough
nut
to
crack,”
said
Lummis,
who
is
a
member
of
that
panel.
But
she
said
the
fact
that
the
U.S.
Department
of
the
Treasury
recently
came
forward
with
crypto
illicit-finance
policy
proposals
is
a
good
sign
that
the
administration
is
now
willing
to
negotiate,
which
could
nudge
the
Senate
Democrats,
too.

Hill
argues
that
the
implosion
of
FTX
last
year
and
the
recent
massive
settlement
and
criminal
conviction
of
Binance,
which
may
give
some
lawmakers
pause
about
the
sector,
should
actually
encourage
pursuit
of
the
legislation.
He
said
each
example
of
bad
behavior
“only
reinforces
that
we
need
to
do
this
and
do
it
the
right
way.”
Having
no
regulations
in
place
“is
what’s
going
to
advantage
illicit
finance.”

So,
even
if
a
crypto
bill
passes
the
House
next
year,
it
still
needs
approval
in
the
Senate
and
a
presidential
signature.
In
practical
terms,
that
may
require
plugging
it
into
a
more
complex
package
and
attaching
it
to
must-move
legislation,
such
as
a
spending
bill.

“Passing
laws
takes
time,”
Sen.
Kirsten
Gillibrand
(D-N.Y.),
who
has
partnered
with
Lummis
on
crypto
legislation,
warned
the
industry
crowd
on
Thursday.

“Not
that
many
people
care
about
cryptocurrency,”
Gillibrand
argued,
advising
the
industry
to
keep
educating
people.
“The
rest
of
the
country
doesn’t
know
what
you’re
doing.”