A group of US lawmakers are coming together as they seek clarification from Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin regarding rumors that his office is considering implementing regulations that would restrict the use of self-hosted wallets.
In a letter signed by US Representatives Warren Davidson, Tom Emmer, Ted Budd and Scott Perry, the members of the congress highlight that a proposal requiring financial institutions to collect the identifying information of self-hosted wallet owners would not advance America’s interests in the digital asset space.
“Americans’ utilization of digital asset transactions would be placed at a significant disadvantage to our global competitors. It would hinder American leadership and preclude meaningful participation in the technological innovation currently underway throughout the global financial system.”
They also warned that such regulations could actually undermine the Treasury Department by hindering its ability to keep bad actors from exploiting the financial system. In addition, the rumored measures would raise privacy issues while adding more regulatory burden on businesses in the digital asset sectors as well as the users.
The congressmen also stress that users of self-hosted wallets enjoy certain privileges such as privacy and the ability to transact freely. These abilities exist in stark contrast with China’s digital yuan network, where transactions are monitored and can be censored
In addition, the lawmakers argue that self-hosted wallets along with the permissionless property of digital assets can enable the underbanked and unbanked to gain access to banking services.
“Given the importance of such innovation, we believe that any regulatory proposal should carefully consider how to best meet law enforcement needs while also ensuring that adoption of this innovative technology is not stymied… Department consultation with Congress and outside industry stakeholders is vital to appropriately address this matter.”
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