Armstrong Opposition Precedes Senate Committee Delay on Crypto Bill
Hours after Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong expressed his firm disapproval, the United States Senate Banking Committee pushed back a scheduled debate on new cryptocurrency regulation. The committee announced the postponement on Wednesday.
The draft legislation under review intends to create clear definitions for when digital tokens are considered securities or commodities. Furthermore, it proposes to hand regulatory control of spot crypto markets to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott stated that constructive dialogue with industry and bipartisan colleagues continues. He made this announcement alongside the news that Thursday’s planned discussion would not proceed.
Armstrong declared on X that Coinbase could not endorse the bill as written. This opposition is significant, considering Coinbase’s influential role in negotiations and its substantial financial contributions to political action committees aimed at influencing the 2024 congressional elections in the US.
