Regulation
Marshall Becomes First U.S. Senator to Withdraw from Controversial Cryptocurrency Bill He Co-Sponsored
Republican Senator Roger Marshall has become the first senator to withdraw from a controversial cryptocurrency bill he initially co-sponsored.
On Tuesday, Marshall withdrew his support for the Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2023, a bill recordings show.
Reintroduced in the Senate on July 27, 2023 by Senator Elizabeth Warren, Marshall, and others, the bill garnered significant bipartisan support, with 18 additional co-sponsors from across the party line.
Cryptocurrencies have become a political issue in recent months, with former President Donald Trump vowing to ease regulations and protect innovation if he wins the White House in November.
President Joe Biden’s administration has come under fire for taking a heavy-handed approach to the industry under the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission Author: Gary Gensler.
Marshall, who helped introduce the bill a year ago, has been outspoken in his criticism of cryptocurrencies, labeling the asset class as “threat to national security“, including the stablecoin issuer Bind.
In April, Marshall and Warren wrote a letter to the Department of Defense arguing that there was a lack of oversight into Tether’s role in facilitating rogue nations’ attempts to evade U.S. sanctions.
It was not immediately clear why the senator withdrew as a co-sponsor of the bill. Marshall’s office has yet to respond to a request for comment.
The law claims it will allow the cryptocurrency industry to better comply with existing anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism regulatory frameworks.
Specifically, the bill classifies digital asset providers, such as unhosted wallet providers, miners, and validators, as financial institutions subject to compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act.
Directs the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to issue rules for reporting requirements for large holdings of foreign digital assets.
It also proposes to establish compliance measures for financial institutions, in order to mitigate the risks associated with technologies that enhance anonymity.
Critics of the bill argue that it imposes impracticable compliance burdens on cryptocurrency participants, stifles innovation and could push activities abroad.
They also highlight privacy concerns, economic impacts, and potential unintended consequences, including directing users to unregulated platforms, undermining the bill’s intent to strengthen security.