government
Concerns over Fed nominee may stop Senate from confirming Biden’s picks: Report
Members of the U.S. Senate Banking committee have reportedly divided along party lines regarding President Joe Biden’s pick of Sarah Bloom Raskin as vice chair for supervision for the Board of Governors at the Federal Reserve. According to a Tuesday report from Reuters, Senator Pat Toomey, the ranking member on the Senate Banking Committee, said he had asked the 12 Republican senators on the committee to not attend a meeting in which members were expected to vote on President Biden’s nominees for the Fed. Toomey reportedly said that Democratic leadership can proceed with “five of the six nominees” put forth by the President and expect Republican support — with the exception of Raskin. Republicans’ boycott is reportedly due to concerns over allegations that the prospective Fed vice chair fo...
Russian Ministry wants to legalize Bitcoin mining in specific areas
While the Russian government continues to work out a regulatory regime for digital assets, a federal ministry has made another proposal regarding the crypto mining industry. Russia’s Ministry of Economic Development has greenlighted the concept of crypto mining regulation in the country, proposing to allow mining operations in areas with “sustainable surplus in electricity generation,” local news agency Izvestia reported Tuesday. As part of the proposal, the ministry suggested introducing lower fees for setting up mining farms and data centers in specific Russian regions as well as offering reduced energy rates for such facilities. The ministry also wants to establish a power use limit for mining by individuals, reportedly proposing to introduce higher energy rates for increased energy spe...
Belarus president signs decree to support free circulation of crypto
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has signed a decree affirming the country’s formal support of free circulation of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC). Lukashenko’s press office announced Monday that the president has signed a decree “On the register of virtual wallet addresses and the circulation of cryptocurrency.” The document provides a legal basis for Belarus Hi-Tech Park to establish and manage a register of crypto wallet addresses used in illegal activities. The decree document specifically details the process and standards for seizing cryptocurrency from criminals by the government. The decree intends to protect crypto investors from potential losses and to “prevent unintentional involvement in activities prohibited by law.” The announcement points out that Belarus has tak...
New Hampshire Governor issues executive order establishing commission to study crypto
Chris Sununu, who has served as the governor of New Hampshire since 2017, has established a commission aimed at investigating the technology and laws around digital assets in addition to recommending new legislation. On Wednesday, the New Hampshire Governor’s office announced it would be issuing Executive Order 2022-1 to create the Governor’s Commission on Cryptocurrencies and Digital Assets. Governor Sununu cited the “rising use and acceptance” of crypto as well as the growth of distributed ledger and blockchain technologies in his decision to establish the commission. According to the executive order, the crypto commission will have 180 days — until Aug. 8 — to submit a report to officials within the New Hampshire state government consisting of a “review and investigation regarding...
Tennessee lawmaker introduces bill which would allow state to invest in crypto
Jason Powell, a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives, has introduced a bill proposing counties, municipalities, and the state to invest in cryptocurrencies and nonfungible tokens, or NFTs. According to Tennessee House Bill 2644 introduced on Feb. 2, Powell proposed amending the current state code to add crypto, blockchain, and NFTs to the list of authorized investments for the counties, state, and municipalities to make with idle funds. Lawmakers assigned the bill to the House Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee on Feb. 8 for further consideration. The legislation was the second related to crypto and blockchain introduced by Powell. The same day, he asked Tennessee lawmakers to consider forming a study committee aimed at making the state “the most forward thinking and p...
US lawmaker pushes for state-level regulations on stablecoins at hearing on digital assets
Whether regulations on stablecoins and digital assets should be addressed at the state or federal level was the topic of discussion among at least two U.S. lawmakers in a hearing for the House Committee on Financial Services. Speaking virtually at a Tuesday hearing titled “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: The President’s Working Group on Financial Markets’ Report on Stablecoins,” North Carolina Representative and ranking committee member Patrick McHenry asked the committee to consider state-level regulatory frameworks in lieu of a comprehensive federal law on stablecoins. In response to McHenry, Jean Nellie Liang, the Under Secretary for Domestic Finance at the U.S. Treasury Department, said there was no explicit law governing stablecoins and digital assets at the federal level bu...
Venezuelans reportedly hit by new Bitcoin tax of up to 20%
The Venezuelan government has approved a new tax bill aiming to collect up to 20% in taxes from cryptocurrency transactions, according to local reports. Venezuela’s National Assembly held a second discussion session on Thursday for a new draft bill targeting taxes on “large financial transactions” in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC). The Venezuelan government reportedly approved the draft bill last Thursday, requiring local firms and individuals to pay up to 20% for operations carried out in cryptocurrencies as well as foreign currencies such as the United States dollar. Filed on Jan. 20, the draft law aims to collect 2%–20% from transactions in any currencies other than those issued by the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, or the Venezuelan bolivar and the country’s oil-backe...
Stealth rulemaking: Is proposed SEC rule with no mention of crypto a threat to DeFi?
On Jan. 26, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission proposed amendments to Rule 3b-16 under the Exchange Act that lacks any mention of digital assets or decentralized finance, which could adversely affect platforms that facilitate crypto transactions. Some cryptocurrency advocates — including SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce — believe that the commission’s extended definition of an exchange could thrust an entire class of crypto entities under the regulator’s jurisdiction, subjecting them to additional registration and reporting burdens. How real is the threat? The proposed change The amendments proposed by the regulator dramatically expand the definition of what an exchange is while eliminating the exemption for systems that merely bring together buyers and sellers of securitie...
America COMPETES Act passes House without ‘disastrous’ provision on crypto
A piece of legislation aimed at addressing supply chain issues to keep the U.S. economy and businesses competitive has passed the House of Representatives — without a provision many in the crypto space had criticized for giving the Treasury Secretary authority to shut down exchanges. In a 222-210 vote on Friday, the House of Representatives passed the America COMPETES Act mostly along party lines. The provision originally proposed by Connecticut Representative Jim Himes would seemingly have allowed the Treasury Secretary to have fewer limits on surveilling financial institutions with suspected transactions connected to money laundering and not open the matter to include public feedback. However, lawmakers modified the wording earlier this week to safeguard restrictions currently under by t...
US lawmakers reintroduce bill to stop IRS from taxing crypto transactions under $200
A bill previously introduced by Washington Representative Suzan DelBene aims to exempt crypto users from paying taxes on transactions under $200. According to a Tuesday draft of the Virtual Currency Tax Fairness Act of 2022, Washington Representative Suzan DelBene is seeking to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exclude gains from certain personal transactions of virtual currency. If signed into law, the bill could stop the Internal Revenue Service, or IRS, from requiring U.S. filers to pay taxes on capital gains from crypto transactions of $200 or more. “Antiquated regulations around virtual currency do not take into account its potential for use in our daily lives, instead treating it more like a stock or ETF,” said DelBene. “Virtual currency has evolved rapidly in the past few y...
Diem stablecoin co-founder praises Bitcoin for censorship resistance
Shortly after Meta, formerly Facebook, officially gave up on its stablecoin Diem, some of the key people in the project have become increasingly vocal about the uncensorable nature of Bitcoin (BTC). David Marcus, a co-founder of Diem — originally known as Libra — took to Twitter on Tuesday to predict that Bitcoin will be the No. 1 asset in the next two decades. It’s become clear to me that #Bitcoin will be the one asset and L1 still around in 20+ years with increased compounding relevance over time. The #2 slot (for a different use case) is still tbd. #Ethereum is in the lead for now, but #Solana and others nipping at their heels. 1/2 — David Marcus – dmarcus.eth (@davidmarcus) February 1, 2022 “It’s become clear to me that Bitcoin will be the one asset and L1 still around in 20+ yea...
SEC’s proposed rule on exchanges could threaten DeFi, says Crypto Mom
Hester Peirce, a commissioner for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission known by many in the space as Crypto Mom, is warning that a proposed rule from the agency could potentially affect the regulation of firms involved with decentralized finance. According to a Tuesday Bloomberg report, Peirce said that the 654-page proposal recently released by the SEC to amend the definition of “exchange” as defined by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 could impact the digital asset space. The SEC commissioner reportedly opposed opening the proposal to public comment and said the text could impose additional regulations on decentralized finance, or DeFi, firms. “The proposal includes very expansive language, which, together with the chair’s apparent interest in regulating all things crypto, sugg...
