South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, the ranking Republican Member of the US Senate Banking Committee, is reportedly looking to introduce a bipartisan regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies.
According to February 2 reports by Politico, Scott’s framework was one of his top priorities for the 118th Congress. He was said to be wary of certain aspects of cryptos, alluding to the collapse of exchanges including FTX (“high-profile failures resulted in the loss of consumer assets”) and potential uses for illicit finance.
Scott recently took the place of former ranking member Sen. Pat Toomey, who served his term with no intention of seeking re-election. Toomey had backed a number of legislative efforts to promote innovation within digital asset sectors, and the committee’s chair, Sherrod Brown, also asked incoming Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to collaborate with monetary regulators, lawmakers, and crypto law experts.
Related: US Senate Banking Chairman Raises Possibility of Crypto Ban
The Senate Banking Committee held an inaugural hearing in December, which aimed to investigate the crash and potential further exploration in a new session. The House Financial Services Committee, headed by Rep. Patrick McHenry, is the only one that will set the committee’s legislative agenda for the 2023 Congress. He is reportedly mulling the possibility of creating a subcommittee focused on digital assets, with previous committee structures providing a “big hole”.
