The cryptocurrency regulation game is cracking on Capitol Hill. For years, the rise of an unregulated cryptocurrency exchange has resulted in little comprehensive regulation. Despite Americans’ concerns, the inability to pass necessary crypto regulation without corporate influence subverts voters’ political power in Ohio and across the country.
The most recent iteration of crypto regulation, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act or Clarity Act for short, recently failed to advance in the Senate this month with a 49-50 vote. After months of deliberation, the main goal of the legislation sought to split oversight over $3 trillion crypto industry between the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Yet, this did not happen in a vacuum. Many groups were working behind the scenes to lobby across the political aisle for the bill’s success. For example, organizations associated with the crypto industry spent nearly $8 million advance the legislation through lobbying.
This should cause us to question the motive behind the legislation. If large tech corporations are willing to invest millions of dollars into making sure the legislation gets passed, then likely there are far more sinister motives behind the Clarity Act than regulation.
After all, critics of the bill highlighted the lack of federal oversight over crypto investments made by the president. Although certain provisions exist within the bill governing registration requirements and protection against money laundering, there is little to address ethical concerns related to the executive branch.
This is not just a concern of some Democrats far away in Washington. People are generally skeptical of the business as a whole. A poll from the Pew Research Center found 63% of Americans are not confident in the reliability or safety of cryptocurrency. Even among those who have invested in crypto like bitcoin, ethereum and tether, 39% were not very confident.
We must then ask ourselves why members of the U.S. Senate are so incredibly interested in furthering the industry when their very constituents have deep reservations about it.
Advancing legislation backed by billionaires while keeping input from other players to a minimum is going to result in buyer’s remorse far later down the road. The general instability of items such as bitcoin make it difficult to integrate crypto into our everyday financial systems.
However, we see crypto marching clearly into Ohio. For example, Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office recently announced Ohioans can use cryptocurrency to pay business filings and fees, in addition to credit cards and checks.
Whether Congress passes legislation or not, states are advancing policies that outpace federal regulation. It should be the role of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to advance legislation that meets the needs of all Americans, not just the corporations who want to play puppet with our pockets.
We trade certainty in these uncertain coins for cash. By being able to invest in such legislation, the crypto industry transforms our elected officials into bidders whose very actions can be bought out in service of far scarier schemes.
Let me be clear: Comprehensive crypto regulation is necessary if we want to diversify our financial systems, enforce compliance measures and protect consumers against money laundering. However, we simply cannot trust that corporations who are willing to spend millions of dollars in support of certain legislation have our best interests in mind.
For an act that promotes clarity, I do not see a very clear plan for regulation. While lawmakers in the Senate head home this October ahead of the midterms, the 120th Congress must come back with a plan; they must shut the door on the highest bidder and look toward their constituents for the greatest clarity.
Aiden is a junior studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note the opinions expressed in this column do not represent those of The Post. Want to talk to Aiden about his column? Email him at ar260223@ohio.edu.
