US House Committee Drafts a Bipartisan Bill for Stablecoins

• If approved by the committee and passed by the US Senate and House of Representatives, the bill could serve as the first example of crypto-focused policies in the US.
• The bill proposes standards for who can issue stablecoins and charges the U.S. Federal Reserve with drafting the requirements for issuing stablecoins.
• The new draft is bipartisan and includes proposals from both Republican and Democratic committee members

The U.S. House Financial Services Committee has released the third draft of the stablecoin bill, which features contributions from both Democratic and Republican committee members. The bill is still a draft and will be extensively reviewed during a committee hearing on June 13. Nevertheless, it represents another potential milestone toward a bipartisan agreement on the bill that many feel may be the fastest way to begin U.S. regulation of cryptocurrencies.

The previous draft of the bill, which was released on April 24, concentrated on stablecoin payments rather than regulating other sectors of the digital asset markets like custodial service providers and algorithmic stablecoins. However, the new version is clearer and also provides state legislators with specific authority.

The bill lists the U.S. Federal Reserve as the primary authority charged with developing standards for the issuance of stablecoins. Furthermore, the bill seeks to give state officials the authority to monitor the companies issuing tokens. If passed, the bill will be the US’ first detailed guide on regulating and enforcing stablecoin marketplaces

Compared to previous versions, the new bill provides more powers to federal regulators, such as the power to take immediate steps against state-governed stablecoin issuers. Interestingly, the bill proposes that states would be allowed to transfer their duties of oversight to the federal regulator if needed.

If approved by both the committee and passed by the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate, the bill could serve as the first piece of policy for the crypto industry in the United States