'Disastrous' provision in new US law, warns crypto advocates


A new bill proposed by House leaders may pose privacy and due process concerns, according to Jerry Brito, executive director of non-profit policy advocacy group Coin Center.
This bill would bypass
existing checks and balances on the Treasury Secretary's surveillance
authority, including of crypto firms, according to the Coin Center director.
Earlier this week, the U.S.
House of Representatives passed the America COMPETES Act, which would allow the
Treasury Secretary to block or impose conditions on any transactions or
accounts which are involved in money laundering.
According to a blog post
from Coin Center, industry think tanks are warning that “In brief, it would
hand the Treasury Secretary unchecked discretion to forbid financial
institutions (including cryptocurrency exchanges) from offering their customers
access to cryptocurrency networks. The Secretary may not use this discretion
immediately, but it is not power the Department should have.”
According to a tweet from Brito on Wednesday - To start with, Treasury must conduct a public rule-making
process before imposing any restrictions. A surveillance special measure can be
imposed by the secretary with a simple order, but its duration cannot exceed
120 days and must be accompanied by public rulemaking.
The America COMPETES Act
cited the use of cryptocurrencies in ransomware attacks on U.S.-based
organizations.
According to Brito and Coin
Center research director Peter Van Valkenburgh, the Treasury Department's
removal of restrictions from its "special measures" authority could
have major consequences for individuals and companies operating in the crypto
space.
Legislators are already
working to prevent the provision from becoming law. One Republican lawmaker,
Ted Budd of North Carolina, introduced an amendment that would simply remove it
entirely. But even if it passes the House, it is unclear if it will become law.
The House and Senate
versions of the bill must be passed before a conference committee can consider
the bill. Also, the Senate version of the bill, the Endless Frontier Act, lacks
a counterpart.

Pavan A
CBW - External Analyst
INDIA