US House Passes FIT21 - What Next?

The US House of Representatives has passed the FIT21 bill we talked about yesterday. The next step is approval by the Senate, after which it could become law.

The majority of supporting votes came from Republicans, with 71 pro-crypto Democrats voting in favor, far exceeding expectations. Even Nancy Pelosi voted in favor of the bill. This pivot from anti-crypto to pro-crypto happens easily as power is threatened. With approximately 50 million people in the United States owing crypto (20% of the U.S. adult population), the votes are many.

This is the most bullish crypto legislation in US history that brings clarity to the industry - something that Coinbase and its CEO Brian Armstrong have been fighting for for years.

An interesting aspect of the bill is how it defines regulatory authority:

• If the SEC deems an entity centralized, it falls under SEC jurisdiction.

• If deemed decentralized, it falls under the CFTC.

Though the SEC retains the power to determine if a cryptocurrency is a security, if no one holds more than 20% of the tokens, it is considered decentralized. This detail is crucial. But at the end of the day the SEC still has the final word.

Overall, much progress has been made in the last few days. When power is threatened, policies can change rapidly. President Joe Biden has 10 days to consider the bill. His administration expressed opposition on May 22 but did not indicate a definite veto. And it looks like he might not go through with the veto.

He will want those 50 million votes.

Meanwhile, with the increased regulations, exchanges will now be able to list more tokens without the fear they are listing something they should not be. 

BULLISH for the entire industry!