- Kristin Smith, CEO of crypto industry group Blockchain Association, is optimistic about crypto regulation this year.
- She notes that crypto enforcement actions and settlements are “behind closed doors” matters.
- He said in an interview with Bloomberg that crypto regulation should be about the entire market, not specific players or companies.
US regulators have taken enforcement action or struck major deals with crypto companies over the past few weeks, including paxos, Kraken and Coinbase. people have also been Fined For his role in crypto-related schemes.
But Kristin Smith, CEO of the Blockchain Association, believes that despite these actions, it is Congress that still needs to enact legislation and that process should be as transparent as possible.
Crypto enforcement actions are “behind closed doors”
in one Interview With Bloomberg, broadcast on Wednesday, Smith noted that enforcement actions or guidance from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other regulators have picked up pace in recent days.
While regulators have had to take action from lawmakers in the form of appropriate legislation, Smith is critical of what she is saying in the actions and settlements.”behind closed doors,
According to the CEO of the Blockchain Association, crypto needs proper regulation and the process of implementing these should be transparent.
,We really need a more open process where we look comprehensively at the entire market, within the crypto ecosystem, figure out the proper way to regulate, regulate the different actors within it, and have an open process move forward in where everyone can participate,
Congress must create a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies
Smith says that Congress has been slow to create the necessary regulatory framework and that regulatory moves based on the same rules that apply to traditional assets are becoming more frustrating for crypto industry players.
More than that, people in Washington, including crypto-friendly lawmakers who have been keen to push for proper regulation, have been a bit “burned” and “betrayed” by what happened with collapsed crypto exchange FTX.
Still, he remains optimistic that the House Financial Services Committee’s move to create a specialized digital assets subcommittee is a major step toward legislation. But as law making is a process, it cannot be expected that everything will happen overnight.
According to him, the stablecoin market is likely to be the first sector to receive regulatory clarity in the US – especially as the industry gets closer to bipartisan legislation in 2022.
,there the work is done,” Smith explained, adding that Congress needs to come up with a regulatory framework tailored to cryptocurrencies because the risks associated with this sector are not the same as those of traditional financial services. That should be a priority, she said.
As previously mentioned, US regulators have been highly aggressive, with actions against stablecoin issuers, service providers and crypto custody firms.