Crypto-Friendly Guideline in the United States
The United States legislature is becoming more open towards cryptocurrencies. A new bill aims to provide legal clarity for developers, nodes, and decentralized finance (DeFi), while the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under its new chairman seeks to adapt regulation to crypto, rather than forcing crypto to conform to existing rules.
In the US, lawmakers are embracing cryptocurrencies. A new proposed law aims to establish legal certainty for developers, nodes, and DeFi, while the SEC, under its new leadership, is looking to tailor regulations to the crypto industry instead of imposing fit-for-all rules. The legislation clarifies that custodians of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are considered financial entities and are regulated accordingly. Those not performing this function remain unregulated, aligning with the global consensus.
However, some crucial questions remain unanswered in detail, such as the status of privacy-focused software developers like those behind Twister Cash or Samourai, node operators, miners, validators, and DeFi liquidity providers. The Clearness Act, under discussion in the US Legislature, aims to address these uncertainties and introduces the concept of a ‘non-controlling’ actor exempt from financial regulations when assisting users in self-custodying coins and tokens.
The legislation also exempts certain DeFi applications from Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) oversight, provided there is no evidence of fraud. Node operators, oracles, and liquidity providers in DeFi are not required to register and remain unregulated. By providing legal clarity, the Clearness Act offers protection to wallet developers, DeFi founders, node operators, and liquidity providers.
The Clearness Act reflects the positive stance towards crypto in the US, emphasized by statements from SEC Chairman Paul Atkins. Atkins supports the American value of self-custody and believes that miners and validators should not fall under federal securities laws. The SEC aims to regulate DeFi transparently, seeking input from the public to better understand and regulate decentralized transactions.
SEC Commissioner Mark T. Uyeda sees DeFi as a new opportunity landscape where direct transactions can occur without traditional intermediaries. The SEC is committed to quality regulation and aims to adapt to the unique challenges of DeFi, moving away from traditional regulatory assumptions to protect American investors in decentralized environments.
