Ohio Congressman Tells SEC Hands Off Crypto

Ohio Congressman and cryptocurrency advocate Warren Davidson is to go ahead with his plans to introduce a bill which will effectively eliminate the SEC’s jurisdiction over the industry.

The representative for Ohio is also pushing for sensible cryptocurrency and blockchain technology regulations. He recently invited 32 prominent representatives of the cryptocurrency industry to Washington in order to discuss future ICO legislation. Davidson sits on the United States House Committee on Financial Services, which is responsible for overseeing the entire financial services industry, including the securities, insurance, banking, and housing industries.

The Bill will need to penetrate President Trump’s home guard in the House of Representatives and as yet Davison hasn’t named his co-sponsors. If passed, the bill would effectively create a situation where securities law would not be relevant to ICO as cryptocurrencies would be classified as products rather than securities.

Davidson is hoping for a bipartisan approach to getting the bill through, although the new Democratic majority is thought to have little effect in limiting the SEC’s regulations as they apply to cryptocurrencies. The Examiner commented:

“…[unlikely that the] incoming Democratic majority will get joyfully on board with any form, of crypto deregulation strategy, though the Congressional Blockchain Caucus has historically featured a bipartisan membership.”

Craig Phillips, the senior adviser to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, stated publicly on Monday that the department would be releasing its latest position on cryptocurrencies in the near future.

It has been noted that despite Davidson’s push for change within the SEC to combat its punitive stance on cryptocurrencies, startups have taken their own approach to sidestep rules through VC funding or raising by raising funds privately. Over the next few months, the SEC has several pending cases against cryptocurrency exchanges and ICOs.

CNN claims that this regulatory uncertainty could result in a decline in investor confidence, a fact which Congressman Davidson and his supporters in Washington are fully aware of.

Source: https://bitcoinnews.com/ohio-congressman-tells-sec-hands-off-crypto