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Coin Center to Lawmakers: Blockchain Startups Are Best Advised to Leave US
A recent Congressional hearing saw the non-profit blockchain advocacy group Coin Center call for a federal approach to money services licensure.
Por Stan Higgins
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A Congressional hearing on Friday saw the non-profit blockchain advocacy group Coin Center call for a federal approach to money services licensure.
The House of Representatives Subcommittee on Digital Commerce and Consumer Protection – a part of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce – hosted a session on financial technology and consumer choice as part of its ongoing "Disrupter" series. Blockchain was on the agenda during a similar panel in March 2016, during which the tech's regulatory impact was weighed.
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Among those appearing during the panel was Coin Center director of research Peter Van Valkenburgh, who, according to a hearing agenda, spoke alongside Jeanne Hogarth, vice president of the Center for Financial Services Innovation; Christina Tetreault, staff attorney for Consumer Union; and Javier Saade, managing director of Fenway Summer Ventures.
In his written statement, Van Valkenburgh argued that the US has an opportunity to lead on the fintech front – but at present, the current regulatory climate has resulted in a situation in which "we are following not leading".
Van Valkenburgh told the subcommittee:
"A young innovator dreaming of building the financial infrastructure of the future would be well-advised to leave the U.S. Not because she should try and avoid justifiable consumer protections, or do it on the cheap in a foreign state that will look the other way, but—instead—because simply determining what the U.S. regulatory landscape demands from her is a herculean undertaking."
One solution to easing that regulatory burden: curtailing the state-by-state approach to licensing money services businesses, like the kinds that work with digital currencies.
"In order to reestablish the US as a leader, we need to rationalize the chaos of financial services regulation," he said. "The state-by-state approach to money transmission licensing, in particular, jeopardizes not only permissionless innovation but also responsible innovation."
A video of the House hearing can be viewed below:
Image via YouTube
