Democrats working on the cryptocurrency market structure bill told key Senate Banking Republicans that they aim to tighten restrictions on stablecoin yield payments and tackle issues related to elected officials’ cryptocurrency ventures, according to a report published Wednesday.
‘Core Principles’ Yet To Be Addressed, Say Democrats
Democrats presented their counteroffer to GOP negotiators on Monday in response to last week's Republican proposal for a compromise market structure bill, called the Responsible Financial Innovation Act.
While the Democrats have accepted significant parts of the proposal, including major concessions on elements like token classification, they argue that the Republican offer fails to meet the “core principles” Democrats released in September, Politico reported, citing the counteroffer document.
Trump’s Crypto Profits A Point Of Contention?
The Democrats expressed concerns that interest or yield payments on stablecoin balances could potentially draw deposits away from the banking system, particularly from community banks.
Moreover, the Democrats are pushing for limits on elected officials and their families from issuing, endorsing, or profiting from digital assets while in office.
The report also mentioned that Senate Banking Committee Chair Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) is eager to conduct a markup before lawmakers break for the holidays at the end of next week, but Democrats are resisting.
Benzinga contacted Scotte and Ranking Member Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) for a comment.
This development comes amid talks that the long-delayed crypto market structure bill was nearing completion. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) stated that bipartisan negotiations have accelerated, intending to release a draft by the end of the week.
However, Lummis added that White House has pushed back after reviewing proposed ethics rules connected to digital asset profits tied to President Donald Trump’s family.
Ethics rules have taken on added political sensitivity after reports that Trump and his family generated significant income from ventures linked to the World Liberty Financial (CRYPTO: WLFI) DeFi and stablecoin platform.
Warren, ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, has been a persistent critic of the cryptocurrency bills, arguing that they fail to tackle what she refers to as Trump’s “crypto corruption.”
‘Decently Frustrating’ Pace Of Talks
Senate Banking Committee member Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) described the negotiations in the last couple of weeks as "decently frustrating." The Republican lawmaker stressed that he doesn't want to promulgate a "bad bill" just for the sake of passing something, adding that "no deal is better than a bad deal.
The House and Senate have different versions of the bill. The CLARITY Act, as it is known in the lower chamber, passed with bipartisan support earlier in July.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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