Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), Chair of the House Financial Services Committee, has reached out to regulators in an effort to pass a crypto-focused bill that would provide a pathway for U.S.-based digital asset exchanges to register with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In a letter to SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, Waters asked him to explain how the Digital Asset Market Structure proposal would affect the SEC’s existing authorities and its mission to protect investors and maintain fair markets.
In a separate letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Waters inquired about the impact the bill would have on the Treasury Department’s mission to promote economic prosperity and ensure financial stability, as well as how it would address or conflict with any policy recommendations made by the Treasury Department or Financial Stability Oversight Council.
The Digital Asset Market Structure proposal, co-signed by Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) and Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-Penn.), is the most significant crypto oversight proposal created in Congress this year. It would approve digital securities, commodities, and stablecoins for trading, as well as provide guidelines for distinguishing a crypto-based security from a commodity.
Waters’ letters demonstrate the Democrats’ attempts to pass a bill that could bring greater regulatory clarity to the crypto industry, despite its unpopularity with many in the party. The SEC, under Gensler’s watch, has taken enforcement actions against major industry players such as Coinbase, Binance, Kraken, and Bittrex. Waters has asked Gensler and Yellen to respond to her requests by Friday.