U.S. Congressman Brad Sherman, who chairs a House subcommittee on investor protection and a leading crypto skeptic in Washington, is seeking more stringent cryptocurrency regulation, if not all-out bans, according to a report by the LA Times.
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Fast facts
- In an interview with the Times, Sherman equated cryptocurrency to a “Ponzi scheme” and suggested that lobbying and campaign contributions are factors that have kept the digital currency safe from tougher regulation.
- “I don’t think we’re going to get [to a ban] anytime soon,” Sherman told The Times, adding, “we didn’t ban it at the beginning because we didn’t realize it was important, and we didn’t ban it now because there’s too much money and power behind it.”
- In lieu of a ban, Sherman believes cryptocurrency should be regulated through the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the same regulatory body that oversees stocks, bonds and other securities.
- In an opposing camp are U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow and John Boozman, who introduced a bill last month that would define Bitcoin and Ether as digital commodities under the oversight of the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which regulates other commodities such as corn and aluminum.
- This Monday and Tuesday, Sherman will join the Crypto Policy Symposium 2022, a policy conference including other crypto critics such as Alex Sobel, a member of the British Parliament, and John Reed Stark, former chief of the SEC’s Office of Internet Enforcement.
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