US Senate Banking Committee’s Hearing on Digital Asset Market Structure

On Tuesday, the US Senate Banking Committee’s subcommittee on digital assets held a hearing to discuss market structure, but many members were notably absent.

Attendance and Opening Remarks

The hearing, titled “Exploring Bipartisan Legislative Frameworks for Digital Asset Market Structure,” was chaired by Subcommittee Chair Cynthia Lummis. She remarked on the low attendance, noting that “a lot of competing committees” scheduled for the day could explain why only five out of the usual 11 subcommittee members were present to engage with former regulators and industry experts.

Participants and Discussion

Republican senators Dave McCormick, Bill Hagerty, Bernie Moreno, along with Lummis and Senator Angela Alsobrooks, participated in the hearing. They posed questions to former US Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Rostin Behnam, Ryan VanGrack, Coinbase’s vice president of legal, Greg Xethalis, Multicoin Capital’s general counsel, and Sarah Hammer, Executive Director at the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School.

Legislation and Bipartisan Concerns

The lawmakers sought insights on principles for potentially introducing a crypto market structure bill, following the successful passage of the stablecoin bill, the GENIUS Act. Lummis acknowledged the sparse attendance, expressing her desire not to propose legislation without sufficient bipartisan input, saying, “I don’t want to come up with a piece of legislation that the other side of the aisle feels they haven’t had adequate input in.”

Lummis further expressed confusion over the apparent lack of bipartisan engagement in crypto bills, speculating that it might be related to concerns about potential advantages for individuals connected to the current administration. “I understand what happens when you have a set of leaders that are not engaged in digital assets… Maybe this is about concern that certain people that have family members in the administration are going to be advantaged in some way by what we’re doing,” she said.

Senator Alsobrooks’ Participation

Alsobrooks, the only Democratic lawmaker present, was not a regular subcommittee member and seemed to sit in for ranking member Ruben Gallego. She had co-sponsored the original GENIUS Act and voted in favor of the amended bill.

Clarity for Digital Assets: Senate vs. House

Moreno questioned why the proposed legislation appeared partisan, though neither he nor Lummis mentioned President Donald Trump in discussing potential conflicts of interest regarding the crypto market structure or stablecoin bills.

Despite bipartisan support for the GENIUS Act, with many Democrats voting alongside Republicans on June 17, some Democrats have indicated they might oppose further legislation unless it addresses the president’s alleged ties to the crypto industry.

The Senate’s proposed market structure legislation follows the House of Representatives’ efforts to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity, or CLARITY Act. This legislation moved out of committee in June and is anticipated to be considered for a floor vote soon.

Image Credit: cointelegraph.com