ICYMI: Chairman Waters Joins DC Fintech Week to Discuss Financial Technology Leadership, Advancing Financial Inclusion

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA)chairman of the House Committee on Financial Services, joined Professor Chris Brummer, professor at Georgetown University Law Center and founder of DC Fintech Week, at his annual DC Fintech Week to discuss financial technology and the future of finance.

Since assuming the Chair in 2019, Chairman Waters and the Committee have led the charge in Congress to conduct deep dives into digital asset products and services to learn more about how the space is changing and to understand the impact on the broader payments system as well as the risks and opportunities for consumers.

During the conversation, Chairman Waters highlighted a number of key points:

• As a result of the Chair’s leadership, the Financial Services Committee has already built consensus in at least three areas:
  • The need for Congressional action to regulate the industry,
  • The need for robust consumer and investor protection,
  • The need to stay laser focused on financial inclusion

• Through the work on the stablecoins legislation, the digital wallets that hold them and the central bank digital currencies, it is important to consider how these products will be used by everyday consumers and investors, especially those who are often excluded from the traditional financial system, including people of color.
• If the use of digital assets is to grow, we must consider how best to protect ourselves with robust cyber security, strong privacy protections and safeguards to catch bad actors who can use these products to evade sanctions, conduct illegal transactions and harm consumers and investors.
• The Committee is deeply dedicated to ensuring that our financial system facilitates responsible innovation that can also play a role in achieving financial equity, and ensuring that the United States remains the global leader in finance, technology and payments. All while protecting consumers and promoting financial inclusion.

See the full conversation HERE. (Start: 7:00:45)

###

Background:

9 May 2019, Chairman Waters announced the creation of the committee’s Task Forces on Financial Technology and Artificial Intelligence.

On July 17, 2019, Chairman Waters held a hearing entitled “Examines Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency and its impact on consumers, investors and the US financial system,” which explored Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency and its effects on consumers, investors and the United States.

On October 23, 2019, Chairman Waters held a hearing entitled “An examination of Facebook and its impact on the financial and housing sectors,” where committee members asked CEO Mark Zuckerberg about Facebook’s proposed stablecoin product and digital wallet.

Committee 21 April 2021 reauthorized Task Forces on Financial Technology and Artificial Intelligence for the 117th Congress.

On June 15, 2021, the Task Force on Financial Technology held a hearing entitled “Digitizing the Dollar: Examining the Technological Infrastructure, Privacy, and Financial Inclusion Implications of Central Bank Digital Currencies“, which discussed possible design trade-offs for a United States Central Bank digital currency (CBDC), and explored implications for consumer privacy and the potential for increased financial inclusion.

June 16, 2021, Chairman Waters announced the establishment from the Digital Assets Working Group (DAWG) of Democratic members to comprehensively examine digital assets-related policy and legal issues.

On June 16, 2021, the Subcommittee on National Security, International Development, and Monetary Policy, chaired by Representative Himes, held a hearing entitled “Regimes and Undermining: How Bad Actors and Foreign Governments Undermine and Avoid Sanctions Regimes“, which examined how cryptocurrencies, CBDCs and other digital assets can offer new avenues for evasion of sanctions and other financial crimes.

On June 30, 2021, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, chaired by Representative Green, held a hearing entitled “America on ‘FIRE’: Will Crypto Frenzy Lead to Financial Independence and Early Retirement or Financial Ruin?” which focused on investor protection concerns with exchange activities for cryptocurrency markets.

On July 21, 2021, the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions, chaired by Representative Perlmutter, held a hearing entitled “Banking the Unbanked: Exploring Private and Public Efforts to Expand Access to the Financial System“, which explored proposals such as FedAccounts, which could require the Fed to create digital transaction accounts, based on a CBDC, that could be provided to consumers through depository institutions and the US Postal Service, or directly to consumers.

On July 27, 2021, the Subcommittee on National Security, International Development, and Monetary Policy held a hearing entitled “The promises and perils of central bank digital currencies“, which explored the risks of CBDC from a national security and monetary policy perspective.

On December 8, 2021, the full committee held a hearing entitled “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: Understanding the Challenges and Benefits of Financial Innovation in the United States“, with testimony from CEOs of the biggest digital asset companies, including Circle, FTX, Paxos and Coinbase Inc.

On February 8, 2022, the full committee held a hearing entitled “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: President’s Task Force on Financial Markets Report on Stablecoins,” with Nellie Liang, Undersecretary for Domestic Finance at the U.S. Treasury Department, who testified about the rapid growth of stablecoins and the findings of the “Report on Stablecoins” by the President’s Financial Markets Working Group (PWG).

On April 28, 2022, the Task Force on Financial Technology held a hearing entitled “What’s in your digital wallet? A review of recent trends in mobile banking and payments”, which explored the legal and regulatory framework governing digital wallets that hold various types of digital assets in custody and on behalf of consumers, as well as relevant implications for consumer protection.

On May 26, 2022, the full committee held a hearing entitled “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: Examining the Benefits and Risks of a Federal Reserve Bank Digital Currency,” with Deputy Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Governor Lael Brainard, testifying about the Federal Reserve’s recent research and development efforts on a US CBDC.

###