US Cogressmen Asked FinCEN To Extend The Feedback Deadline For Crypto Regulations
Several US Congress members and a Senator have joined Coinbase in asking the US Treasury to extend the timeframe for responses to the recently proposed crypto regulations. The lawmakers argued that the agency hadn’t provided enough time for all concerned parties to issue their feedback.
US Congresspeople Ask For Crypto Regulation Extension
CryptoPotato reported recently that the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) proposed new regulations on Money Services Businesses (MSBs) that included numerous cryptocurrency companies.
Essentially, the proposed legislation required digital asset exchanges to keep verified identities, records of the customers’ transactions and counterparties above certain transactions, and submit reports to authorities.
Interestingly, FinCEN provided a 15-day period for responses met with skepticism from multiple US-based cryptocurrency businesses. Coinbase was among the first to respond, and the largest American exchange asked the agency to provide the typical period for such propositions – 60 days.
Eight members of Congress, namely Reps. Tom Emmer, David Schweikert, Warren Davidson, Ted Budd, Bill Foster, Darren Soto, Suzan DelBene, and Tulsi Gabbard, and US Senator Tom Cotton recently made the same request.
In a joint letter addressed to US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and FinCEN Director Kenneth Blanco, they said that the complexity of these new rules require more time for the American public to respond.
Similar to Coinbase’s attempt, the rule-makers asked for an extension from 15 days to 60 days so that “stakeholders have a meaningful opportunity to evaluate how the proposed rule will impact their business and customers.”
Extension For The Implementation
The letter also highlighted the significance of such legislation and its potential impact on the industry and the American people. It reads that the authors share FinCEN’s “goal of protecting national security and supporting law enforcement in their efforts to combat criminals who seek to engage in money laundering, illicit financing, and other criminal activity.”
As such, the Congress members and the Senator also asked the agency to extend the period for the implementation of the legislation, if approved.
“Consider an extension of implementation of this proposed rule by an appropriate timeframe (potentially six months), so that stakeholders may carefully consider and develop the technological solutions that will be required to implement any final rule, should it go in effect.”
