Crypto’s Capitol Hill conundrum

From: POLITICO's Morning Money - Monday Jul 24,2023 12:02 pm
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POLITICO Morning Money

By Zachary Warmbrodt

Presented by Structured Finance Association

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The cryptocurrency industry is set to score its biggest lobbying win ever this week, when House committees vote for the first time on bills that would set up special rules for digital asset trading.

The next big test: Fending off a looming crackdown in the Senate, where a growing number of Democrats and Republicans are rallying behind proposals to curb crypto’s use in money laundering, drug trafficking and sanctions evasion.

The disconnect dissected in depth here by our Eleanor Mueller — illustrates how far the crypto world has come in its bid for legitimacy, but also how it’s failed to prove its worth in the eyes of a critical mass of lawmakers. A series of scandals and evidence that crypto delivers scant economic value have done little to help the cause.

Your MM host covered Congress’s first “virtual currency” hearing in 2013. It’s notable how the crypto world has struggled over the past decade to tamp down what was a big concern for lawmakers from the beginning: the technology’s use in criminal activity. The WSJ reported last week that officials “are increasingly seeing cryptocurrency play a role in almost every area of the criminal underworld.”

To be sure, the federal government has put rules in place to police crypto money laundering since Bitcoin hit the scene. Law enforcement has brought a series of high-profile cases demonstrating its ability to “follow the money” in the digital asset world.

But it’s not enough for a growing number of lawmakers, and closing any lingering gaps is turning out to be the Senate’s crypto priority. It’s a concern that is uniting everyone from Sens. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) to Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).

Senate Banking Chair Sherrod Brown — a crypto skeptic who more or less controls the chamber’s agenda on the issue – told Eleanor: “The first part is whatever it takes to crack down on the money launderers and the criminal syndicates that are using crypto.”

The industry has long treated the prospect of new anti-money laundering requirements as not just unnecessary but also a threat to “decentralized” finance and privacy. But even its allies on Capitol Hill — like Sen. Cynthia Lummis, dubbed the Senate’s “crypto queen” — are signaling that it’s a political reality that digital asset firms will have to accept if they want any hope of getting other regulatory carveouts.

“In some ways, I think the Senate approach is smarter because they're solving a very clear and present problem,” said Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), who may support the House GOP proposals. “[In the House] it's this idea that, ’Oh my goodness, exchanges may set up in Australia.’ That would make me sad. But again, I just don’t know that. I just think there’s a lot of nonsense in this industry.”

The bottom line: House Republicans are about to make history by advancing Congress’s first-ever federal regulatory framework for crypto. They may even pass it in the coming months with bipartisan support. The crypto world will revel in its moment of political legitimacy. But the effort already feels DOA, especially if digital asset advocates continue to resist the Senate’s big ask.

Happy Monday — Congress has one more week to go until August recess. What should we be covering? Drop us a line.

 

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Driving the Week

Tuesday … The Fed begins a two-day FOMC meeting … Former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers talks industrial and foreign policy at a Peterson Institute event at 9:30 a.m. …

Wednesday … The CFTC votes on clearing and margin-related rules at 9:30 a.m. … Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry testifies at a Senate Banking hearing on fees at 9:30 a.m. … House Financial Services votes on crypto and illicit finance bills at 10 a.m. … The SEC votes on rules including cybersecurity safeguards at 10 a.m. … Treasury Under Secretary Jay Shambaugh and State Under Secretary Jose Fernandez testify on U.S. economic security at Senate Foreign Relations at 10 a.m. … The Fed is expected to announce a rate hike at 2 p.m., followed by a press conference from Chair Jerome Powell

Thursday … The Commerce Department releases second-quarter GDP numbers at 8:30 a.m…The FDIC meets at 10 a.m. and the Fed meets at 1 p.m. to propose higher capital requirements for large banks …

Friday … The Financial Stability Oversight Council talks climate risk and the LIBOR transition in a public session at 11:10 a.m. …

 

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Driving the day

The next test for ‘Bidenomics’ — POLITICO’s Holly Otterbein and Zack Colman have a look at the fraying relationship between President Joe Biden and the labor world, which will be a key dynamic to watch in the coming weeks as multiple strikes threaten to weigh on the economy.

Democrats are bracing for a strike by the United Auto Workers when the union’s contract ends in September. The UAW’s president has been bashing the Biden administration for its handling of electric vehicle subsidies, and former President Donald Trump is making a play for the union’s endorsement.

The Fox interview the White House wants you to see — CEA Chair Jared Bernstein on “Fox News Sunday” urged lawmakers to enact more of Biden’s proposals to expand housing availability, including curbs on exclusionary zoning and tax credits.

“Congress needs to get off whatever it is they’re not focusing on right now … and look at these housing issues,” he said. “Try to help us with some of the progress we’ve been making on inflation.”

 

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Regulatory Corner

U.K. Treasury to press execs on ‘de-banking’ — The FT reports that U.K. Treasury economic secretary Andrew Griffith will summon the heads of Britain’s biggest banks to explain how they intend to ensure that customers aren’t discriminated against for their political views.

The scrutiny follows a decision by British bank Coutts to close the account of former U.K. Independence Party leader Nigel Farage.

Farage released a dossier from Coutts that showed his account had been closed in part because his views were at “odds with our position as an inclusive organization”. His account also fell below Coutts’s requirements.

Watchdogs warn CFTC on election betting — Public Citizen executive vice president Lisa Gilbert and government affairs lobbyist Craig Holman urged the CFTC in a new letter to reject a bid by Kalshi to set up U.S. election betting, warning it would run afoul of agency rules and federal law.

“We are stunned that the [CFTC] is even considering approval of such a gaming contract that will likely damage both the appearance and the practice of the integrity of American elections,” they said.

 

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On the Hill

Groups urge Senate to rethink fintech limits for SBA — Financial technology and payments trade associations told leadership of the Senate Small Business Committee that they’re “deeply concerned” about the bill the panel approved to walk back SBA rules that allow more fintech firms to issue government-backed small-business loans.

“This bill limits competition in the market,” the Electronic Transactions Association, Financial Technology Association, Innovative Lending Platform Association and the Small Business Finance Association said in a letter to Small Business Chair Ben Cardin and ranking member Joni Ernst.

Lawmakers are concerned that the SBA isn’t prepared to oversee nonbank fintech firms that don’t otherwise have a federal regulator.

Economy

A shift in the urban-rural divide — Third Way is out with a new report that finds the extra earnings urban workers typically get over their rural peers is growing for those with a college degree and shrinking for those without.

The percentage of rural Americans with a college degree is equal to the percentage of urban Americans with a degree in 1990, according to the study, which also finds that low wages and high costs are pushing non-college workers out of cities.

 

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