A meeting in the U.S. House Financial Services Committee called “Decoding DeFi: Breaking Down the Future of Decentralized Finance” heard people who support decentralized finance (DeFi) debate against stricter rules.
There were people in the audience who spoke out in support of the business. They said that strict anti-money laundering (AML) rules and more surveillance would stop innovation in the digital asset sector.
Representative Bill Foster and other Democratic lawmakers who lack confidence in crypto demanded that DeFi developers should be held responsible for illegal activities that use blockchain technology.
DeFi Regulations Spark Political Shift
As the U.S. Treasury is the agency that is supposed to police AML rules and go after blockchain code writers, they called for stricter oversight by regulators.
Parliamentarians also asked if blockchain could be used to avoid paying taxes, but Peter Van Valkenburgh, research head at Coin Center, strongly denied this.
Criminals find it hard to get away from lawmakers, Van Valkenburgh said, because blockchain is open and not controlled by a single entity. He pointed out that large-scale illegal activities usually use older financial systems.
Politics around DeFi and the digital currency seem to be changing, even though there are still concerns. The crypto caucus had some lawmakers agree with Van Valkenburgh, and major financial companies like BlackRock are now interested in the industry.
Not caring who wins the presidential race, Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal said that Americans would choose a Senate that supports crypto.
For example, Donald Trump, the Republican candidate for president in 2024, has promised to support the cryptocurrency business and make the U.S. a global hub for cryptocurrency.
On the other hand, Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, has taken crypto funds and met with leaders in the field, but it is still not clear what she thinks about crypto policy. Harris has been supported for president by Chris Larsen, who helped create Ripple.
