‘CryptoCurrency Act of 2020’ draft bill to provide regulatory clarity

With many countries clarifying regulatory stance on crypto, U.S. Congressman Paul Gosar introduced a draft bill for the same. The bill dubbed the ‘Crypto-Currency Act of 2020’ was introduced to shed light on which Federal agencies regulate digital assets. These agencies will be required to notify the public of any Federal licenses, certifications, or registrations required to deal [Create or trade] in such assets, reported Forbes.

The draft bill classified cryptocurrencies as Crypto-currencies, Crypto-securities, and Crypto-commodities and proposed the regulatory authority to overlook each of these classified cryptos. While defining Crypto-commodities as “economic goods or services”, the bill noted that the “Commodity Futures Trading Commission shall be the sole Government agency with the authority to regulate crypto-commodities.”

As crypto-currencies are defined as representations of US currency or synthetic derivatives resting on a blockchain, it will be governed by the Secretary of the Treasury, acting through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network [FinCEN]. Similarly, crypto-Securities understood as “all debt, equity, and derivative instruments that rest on a blockchain”will come under the government of the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC].

The report concluded in the fifth section noting the FinCEN rules for Crypto-currencies:

“Notwithstanding section 3(c), the Secretary of the Treasury, acting through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, shall issue rules to require each crypto-currency (including synthetic stablecoins) to allow for the tracing of transactions in the crypto-currency and persons engaging in such transactions in a manner similar to that required of financial institutions with respect to currency transactions under subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code.”

Regulatory clarity has been of the utmost importance in the US as most crypto-businesses have been omitting the country due to a lack of regulations. If the draft bill passes, CFTC, FinCEN, and SEC will exist as the three ‘Federal Crypto Regulators’ and will share the responsibility for regulating digital assets.