Sen. Lummis teases upcoming crypto bill, says NFTs won’t be included in it

United States Senator Cynthia Lummis appeared connected a livestream hosted by Axios connected Tuesday to tease the highly awaited measure connected cryptocurrency she is authoring. The Wyoming Republican said the measure volition beryllium introduced arsenic “one large portion truthful radical tin spot the large picture” and beryllium breached down into 5 oregon six components for information by the due legislature committees.

The bill, which Lummis is expected to present on with New York Democrat Kristin Gillibrand, is designed “so that it works wrong the accepted model for managing and regulating accepted assets,” Lummis said. It volition disagreement cryptocurrency oversight betwixt the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Oversight of crypto assets volition beryllium fixed to the SEC “when thing fits wrong the Howey Test that makes it a security,” Lummis said, referring to the 1946 Supreme Court determination connected the explanation of a security.

Regulations indispensable besides code altcoins and user confidence, Lummis said, adding they request to "allow regulators to abstracted the wheat from the chaff successful the space." This volition marque it imaginable to usage crypto for payments and integrate the plus people into 401(k) status savings packages, she said.

The Wyoming Senator said she was assured the measure would pass, arsenic “digital assets are nonpartisan.” She expressed anticipation it would determination much rapidly done the legislative process than mightiness beryllium expected for specified a analyzable measure due to the fact that agencies presently person to “make regulatory decisions connected the fly.”

U.S. President Joe Biden’s Executive Order connected Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets “dovetailed beauteous nicely” with the bill’s proposals, Lummis said, though the measure differs from the president’s regulatory imaginativeness successful that it would let non-bank entities to contented stablecoins. Lawmakers would question proposal from the backstage assemblage connected a stablecoin regulatory framework, she added.

Related: Senators Bragg and Lummis sermon crypto laws collaboration betwixt US, Australia

Lummis mentioned that the measure touches connected central slope integer currency (CBDC) without going into detail. Environmental issues volition not beryllium addressed successful the bill, nor volition nonfungible tokens (NFTs). “It’s truthful hard to fig retired however to categorize them,” Lummis said of NFTs. She indicated that regulators whitethorn beryllium capable to determine connected however and if to modulate them aft the transition of the bill.