White House in crypto policy report calls for SEC action, new legislation
(REUTERS)A cryptocurrency working group formed by President Donald Trump on Wednesday outlined the administration's stances on market-defining crypto legislation and called on the US securities regulator to create new rules specific to digital assets.In a factsheet ahead of a landmark report, the White House urged Congress to move forward with legislation that would create a formal crypto regulatory regime, but implored lawmakers to include additional provisions in the bill. Those include allowing trading platforms to also custody crypto, and providing a tailored disclosure regime for issuers of crypto securities.The White House also encouraged the US Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to use their existing authorities to "immediately enable the trading of digital assets at the federal level."Shortly after taking office in January, Trump ordered the creation of a crypto working group tasked with proposing new regulations, making good on his campaign promise to overhaul US crypto policy. Wednesday's report is a culmination of the task force's work so far and its first public findings.In line with Trump's January executive order, it will lay out several new policies from tax provisions to capital markets rules that it says should be enacted to advance the policy goals of the pro-crypto White House.The working group led by Trump official Bo Hines includes several administration officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, SEC Chair Paul Atkins, and Director of the Office of Management and Budget Russell Vought.On the campaign trail last year, Trump courted crypto cash by pledging to be a "crypto president" and promote the adoption of digital assets.Wednesday's report comes just two weeks after the House of Representatives passed a bill called the Clarity Act that would create a broad regulatory guidelines for crypto, and the US Senate is considering its own version of the measure.Earlier this month, Trump signed into law a bill to create federal rules for stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency pegged to the US dollar. That move was hailed as a major win for the digital asset industry, but the White House has said it wants Congress to pass market structure legislation like the Clarity Act next, which would have far wider repercussions for the industry.The report will ask lawmakers to consider several additional measures in the final version of the bill, which could influence ongoing discussions on Capitol Hill.The White House said that Congress should provide the CFTC with the authority to oversee crypto spot markets, and should recognize the potential of decentralised finance technology, referring to blockchain-based platforms that allow users to transact without intermediaries.The report will also offer several recommendations for the SEC and the CFTC, encouraging the regulators to use safe harbors and regulatory sandboxes to allow "innovative financial products to reach consumers without bureaucratic delays."That could include tokenisation, which is the process of turning financial assets - such as bank deposits, stocks, bond funds and even real estate - into crypto assets.Crypto firms and others have been increasingly discussing the prospect of tokenisation. Coinbase recently told Reuters it was seeking a green light from the SEC to offer blockchain-based stocks. The SEC has yet to weigh in publicly on that request.The crypto sector has for years argued that existing US regulations are inappropriate for cryptocurrencies, and has called for Congress and regulators to write new ones that clarify when a crypto token is a security, commodity, or falls into another category, such as stablecoins.The president's support for the crypto industry has sparked conflict-of-interest concerns, which at times have threatened to derail congressional crypto legislation.
Trump's family has launched cryptocurrency meme coins, and the president also holds a stake in World Liberty Financial, a crypto platform.
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