Congress Brad Sherman, who once compared Facebook Libra to 9/11, was recently elected as Chairman of the Investor Protection Entrepreneurship and Capital Markets congressional Subcommittee. According to an announcement by the House Financial Services Committee, Brad Sherman (D) will serve as the chair of the Subcommittee, subject to approval. He replaces Carolyn Maloney as chair. In the past, Brad Sherman has called for a total ban on crypto mining and trading by US citizens.
The Role of the Subcommittee
This subcommittee plays a crucial role in the US financial sector. It oversees the SEC and other self-regulatory organizations. These organizations include the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, and the NYSE. According to Sherman, he has already begun to receive a number of good ideas for legislation and hearings. He added that he was committed to defending the protections in place for investors, improving access to capital, and maintaining the reforms in Wall Street that are helping to drive the US economy forward. Additionally, he said that as a CPA, he was looking forward to examining accounting issues.
He is Not the Only Crypto Opponent is Congress
While Brad Sherman is a fierce critic of crypto, he is not the only one. One of the most influential critics of crypto is Maxine Waters (D), who is the Chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee. Maxine Waters once called on the Facebook Libra project to be put on hold as lawmakers look into the issue. A few months ago, she and other lawmakers traveled to Europe on a fact-finding mission on the Facebook Libra project. She remains concerned that the launch of Libra is akin to allowing private companies to set the monetary policy, which she believes is the preserve of sovereign governments.
Not Everyone in Congress Is Opposed To Crypto
Not every lawmaker, including aspiring lawmakers, is opposed to crypto. A good example is Agatha Bacelar, who announced that her campaign would accept crypto donations. It is also worth noting that Kelly Loeffler, who previously worked as the Bakkt CEO, will join the US senate in 2020. Bakkt has been heavily involved in the crypto sector. It is expected that she might lend a sympathetic ear when it comes to crypto regulation.
One of the fiercest defenders of the crypto sector is Warren Davidson (R), in 2018, it was reported that he planned to introduce a law to regulate the crypto sector. His law wanted to have a new asset class for tokens, which would prevent them from being considered securities by the SEC. Besides that, it would allow the government to regulate ICOs more effectively. In August 2018, he had invited 32 crypto firms to Capitol Hill for a summit on ICO regulation.
Another staunch support of crypto in Congress is Tom Emmer. During the Facebook Libra hearings, he accused regulators of overreach. He noted that there was a lack of clarity when it came to the regulation of the crypto industry. Emmer promised to introduce regulation to protect entrepreneurs in the crypto sector.
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