Congressional Committee To Hold Cryptocurrency, ICO Hearing

On Pi Day, the US House Financial Services Committee is slated to host a hearing entitled “Examining the Cryptocurrencies and ICO Markets.” The meeting is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. EST on March 14, 2018, in room 2128 of the Rayburn House Office Building.

Congressman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), who announced in October 2017 that he will not seek re-election, serves as chairman of the committee. According to the Washington Post, Hensarling worked vigorously to pare back federal oversight of the financial sector.

It will be intriguing to see how Hensarling and his colleagues respond to recent regulatory developments. In just the last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) demanded that platforms supporting the trade of security tokens register with the agency or seek exemption and a New York judge supported the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which defined virtual currency as a commodity.

ETHNews also reported on a letter from FinCEN to Senator Ron Wyden, which asserted that initial coin offerings (ICOs) may require money transmitter licenses.

Unfortunately, it appears that the hearing will be “off-air” and thus not available to the public. However, ETHNews will provide updates regarding the meeting as appropriate.

Matthew is a writer with a passion for emerging technology. Prior to joining ETHNews, he interned for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as well as the OECD. He graduated cum laude from Georgetown University where he studied international economics. In his spare time, Matthew loves playing basketball and listening to podcasts. He currently lives in Los Angeles. Matthew is a full-time staff writer for ETHNews.

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