Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) has voiced his opposition to Senator Elizabeth Warren’s (D-MA) recently proposed anto-crypto bill, according to a letter published by Satoshi Act Fund CEO and co-founder, Dennis Porter.
Tillis’ “significant concerns”
Tillis’ letter, originally published by Porter to X earlier this week, highlights the senator’s concerns about the Warren-spearheaded “Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act.” specifically in regards to its provisions around the Bank Secrecy Act.
“While I believe that federal regulators must have the tools necessary to combat illicit finance and counter bad actors, I have significant concerns about the likely impacts of this legislation,” Tillis wrote in part. “Efforts to extend reporting requirements to validators and miners and classify them as financial institutions for the purposes of BSA compliance appear to fundamentally misunderstand the technical and operational functions these positions play in blockchain operations.”
Warren originally debuted the legislation in July 2023 with co-sponsorship from Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Roger Marshall (R-KS), but has since garnered support from numerous other senators.
In part, the bill would require players in the digital asset industry such as miners, validators, and wallet providers to register as financial institutions and greatly extend know-your-customer technology.
Warren faces pushback
Members of the crypto community have pushed back against the Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act, claiming it would be destructive for the industry at large.
“This proposal aims to eradicate digital asset innovation from the United States at the expense of market security by imposing impractical and unworkable compliance burdens on industry participants,” read a statement published by the Chamber of Digital Commerce shortly after the bill was introduced.
Moreover, the blockchain advocacy group argued the bill would force “unnecessary compliance, stifle innovation, hinder industry growth, and force activity offshore to jurisdictions with less adequate security and oversight.”
In his letter, Tillis adds his voice to these concerns while stating that he remained “concerned about the SEC’s regulation-by-enforcement approach that has heightened uncertainty for good actors in the digital asset space.”
“Heavy-handed regulatory initiatives will only encourage the U.S.-based digital asset industry to offshore, where requirements intended to deter criminal actions are less effective or wholly absent,” Tillis wrote in part.
A grim outlook
Warren has been a longstanding advocate of cracking down on the cryptocurrency industry, particularly after reports broke that Hamas had access to crypto wallets leading up to their October attack on Israel which saw more than 1200 Israelis killed.
Despite the support Warren’s Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act has garnered, open data organization GovTrack gives the bill just a 2% chance of passing.
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