Warren's Crypto Anti-Money Laundering Bill Faces Opposition Amid Fears of Stifling Industry
Summary:
The cryptocurrency sector is abuzz with Senator Elizabeth Warren's proposed anti-money laundering legislation. While the bill has bipartisan support, there's notable opposition with critics arguing that the proposed law could suppress the cryptocurrency industry in the U.S. In addition, they warn that the legislation imposes unrealistic standardized compliance expectations on crypto wallet services, miners, and validators. Despite being presented as a solution to potential financial security risks, detractors maintain it undermines technological progress and individual privacy.
There's been a considerable buzz in the cryptocurrency sector due to Senator Elizabeth Warren's proposed anti-money laundering law for cryptocurrencies. However, some have noted that history shows Warren's bills have a tendency not to progress. As per GovTrack, a platform that monitors legislation, Warren has introduced a total of 330 bills during her legislative tenure of 11 years, but only 10 were incorporated into other legislation and just one relatively obscure bill was enacted as it was - the National POW/MIA Flag Act, mandating the placement of the POW/MIA flag next to the United States flag on specific federal properties.
GovTrack points out that it's uncommon for proposed legislations to become law with many lawmakers managing to get only a few of their sponsored bills signed into law. Often, the actions congresspersons undertake are less notable but equally important, like contributing to legislative amendments and committee work. Warren’s Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act, reintroduced in July, endeavors to plug loopholes in the U.S. money laundering norms by designating various crypto applications and companies, including noncustodial wallets, as financial institutions subject to Bank Secrecy Act regulations.
Despite the bill having successfully attracted bipartisan support and five more senators from Warren’s own Democratic Party endorsing the bill on Dec. 11, it has also faced fierce opposition. Alex Thorn from Galaxy Research, critics of the bill, issued a warning that the proposed law could drive crypto out of the U.S. On a (Twitter) post on Dec. 11, Thorn suggested that the bill could impose a de facto ban on Bitcoin and crypto currencies, especially highlighting the bill's extension of Know Your Customer protocols to crypto wallet services, miners, and validators, as these decentralized entities would not feasibly be able to uphold centralized compliance procedures.
Thorn later added that the bill could potentially make cryptocurrencies illegal in the U.S. Coin Center’s communications director, Neeraj Agrawal, shared on (Twitter) that the proposed bill posed a threat to technological advancement and individual privacy. Though the bill is presented as an answer to possible money laundering and terrorist financing risks, Agrawal argued that it fundamentally rejects liberal values. He firmly stated that the proposed bill could not be improved upon and should be completely resisted.
Published At
12/12/2023 6:39:18 AM
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