CryptoLink - February 2024 Updates

On February 15, 2024, outgoing House Financial Services Chair Patrick McHenry (R-NC) told reporters that Republicans "have an understanding" with Ranking Member Maxine Waters (DCA) on stablecoin legislation. This “understanding” has been a long time coming. The two sides were close in the Summer of 2022, when the combination of upcoming elections and the FTX collapse halted any serious legislative progress on crypto policy. Revisiting the subject in the Summer of 2023, Waters and the White House objected to the McHenry stablecoin framework at the Financial Services Committee markup, and even with bipartisan support, the legislation has still not made it across the House floor. Still, both sides continued their talks, and it is fair to say that an “understanding” is a positive movement. While not a completed deal or locked-in legislative text, and though the administration remains a wildcard, it is clear that McHenry and Waters are in the mode of ‘let’s get something done.’ And at least on stablecoin legislation, it seems that the administration understands the importance of providing some regulatory clarity on the subject, as Treasury Secretary Yellen recommended during her congressional testimony as head of the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC).