On Tuesday, Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) introduced the Responsible Financial Innovation Act, legislation that would create a comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets. 

The bipartisan bill clarifies what role specific federal agencies will play in regulating the growing industry, and asks the SEC and CFTC to study the creation of a new self-regulatory organization for digital assets. The legislation also sets new standards to ensure the security of stablecoins, adds new transparency protections for consumers, and defines Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a number of other widely-used tokens as commodities.

“This would go a long way to clearing up the regulatory cloud that’s hanging over America’s crypto industry,” said Chamber of Progress CEO Adam Kovacevich. “If we’re going to cement the United States’ role as a global leader in crypto, we need clearer rules of the road. This is a case where more regulation translates to a better environment for consumers and for businesses.”

This May, Chamber of Progress sent a letter to Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, urging the U.S. Department of Commerce to establish a digital asset framework following up on President Joe Biden’s cryptocurrency executive order. Chamber of Progress urged the agency to focus its new digital assets framework on promoting workforce development, responsible environmental practices, and regulatory clarity. 

Polling conducted for Chamber of Progress by Morning Consult shows that Democratic voters – particularly younger Democrats – are more positive towards pro-crypto public policies than their Republican counterparts.

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Chamber of Progress (progresschamber.org) is a center-left tech industry policy coalition promoting technology’s progressive future. We work to ensure that all Americans benefit from technological leaps, and that the tech industry operates responsibly and fairly.

Our corporate partners do not have a vote on or veto over our positions. We do not speak for individual partner companies and remain true to our stated principles even when our partners disagree.