House Hearings Reveal Deepening Party Divide
House representatives gathered last week to discuss regulatory gaps in crypto and discuss which regulatory agency should be taking the lead. The hearing revealed what areas industry members should keep an eye on for policy, and uncovered some of the main points of contention between political parties. On Wednesday, digital asset subcommittee members from the House Financial Services and Agriculture committees gathered to hear from six witnesses on the state of crypto regulation. Main topics of discussion included identifying the respective roles of the SEC and CFTC and establishing definitions for “digital commodity” and “digital security,” both of which have turned out to be highly politicized. Just after the hearing adjourned, a leaked internal memo circulated amongst House Financial Services Committee Democrats revealed the party advised lawmakers to advocate for the SEC as the primary regulator overseeing crypto. The document praised SEC Chair Gary Gensler for his recent enforcement action streak this year, which is on pace to eclipse 2022s record number of 30 crypto-related actions. Crypto industry members find the suggestion troubling, as SEC Chair Gary Gensler continues to take an aggressive stance on crypto token classification. Gensler has said he believes “most” cryptocurrencies are securities, although he faced additional criticism when