Congress doesn’t want to ban crypto because it has “too much money and power behind it”
US Congressman Brad Sherman said crypto has become too big and is unlikely to be banned anytime soon, the LA Times reported on September 4.
Sherman has been a vocal critic of cryptocurrencies and believes the technology poses a threat to US national security. Sherman told the LA Times:
“I don’t think we’re going to get it [to a ban] anytime soon. Money for lobbying and money for campaign contributions works, otherwise people wouldn’t do it, and that’s why we haven’t banned crypto.”
He added that:
“[Congress] didn’t ban it in the beginning because we didn’t realize it was important, and we didn’t ban it now because there’s too much money and power behind it.”
In accordance the times, he perceives the crypto industry as a “systemic threat” to the US economy, the dominance of the dollar and national security. Sherman is also “particularly concerned” about protocols such as Tornado Cash.
The US Congress’ stance on crypto
Congress is currently split on whether crypto is good or bad, but nearly all representatives are concerned about protecting investors — mainly via regulation and legislation.
After the US Treasury Department banned Tornado Cash, Congressman Tom Emmer expressed concern regarding the sanctions. He questioned what part of the blockchain and crypto technologies could be sanctioned, and asked the Treasury to clarify the scope of the sanctions.
On the other hand, Congress has focused on crypto more than ever this year. By introducing 80 bills from January 2022 to March 2022, Congress reached a record number of crypto-related bills.
The bills focus on six different categories, namely Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), crypto clarity on the regulatory treatment of digital assets, sanctions, ransomware and implications of either China’s or Russia’s use of crypto.
In addition to working on the regulatory pillar, Congress also began tightening oversight of crypto companies. In August 2022, Congress sent letters to FTX, Kraken, Binance.US, Coinbase, and KuCoin, requesting information on how they combat crypto fraud. Congress is also trying to figure out which department should be primarily concerned about the crypto companies.
Crypto growth
Before the coldest winter in crypto history started, the crypto market had reached $3 trillion in volume. However, after the bear market hit, the market plunged by $2 trillion. On the other hand, prominent crypto leaders are not worried about the fall.
They argue that the bear market will shake off the projects that do not provide real value and make room for real innovation and value-added services. This will also increase adoption, which will pump up the market value in return.
According to a report published by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Bitget and Foresight Ventures in July 2022, crypto is currently in the early stages of adoption. The study showed that crypto is here to stay and the real increase in adoption will start when it integrates with businesses and households.
