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The rise of digital assets and blockchain is transforming the global financial system, but America risks falling behind if our rules do not keep up.
Right now, developers, entrepreneurs, and investors face a maze of vague and overlapping regulations that leave them guessing about how their products will be treated. That uncertainty drives innovation overseas and makes it harder for consumers to know which platforms they can trust. What is needed is not more confusion, but clear and commonsense rules that match the scale of the technology.
Digital assets do not all work the same way. Some function like commodities, others behave more like securities, and many fall somewhere in between. Yet our current patchwork of laws does not provide the clarity to sort those differences out. Instead, regulators often overlap in their authority, cases drag on for years in court, and businesses are left without a clear path forward. That kind of regulatory limbo does not protect consumers, and it does not serve American competitiveness.
A smarter approach would provide a consistent framework for how digital assets are classified and which agencies oversee them. Exchanges and intermediaries should follow the same commonsense safeguards that exist in traditional finance, such as segregating customer assets, maintaining accurate records, and complying with anti-money laundering laws. At the same time, individuals should be able to securely hold and transfer their own digital assets in self-custodied wallets, provided their transactions are lawful. Protecting both security and personal freedom is not only possible, it is essential.
Regulation also needs to evolve alongside the technology. Congress should require regular, data-driven studies of decentralized finance, foreign risks, and investor awareness so that future policy decisions are based on facts, not fear. The United States has the talent, capital, and infrastructure to lead in this space, but only if innovators and investors have confidence that the rules are clear, stable, and fairly enforced.
This debate is not about favoring one company, one industry, or one bill. It is about ensuring the United States provides a modern framework for a market that is already reshaping the global economy. Commonsense rules will allow innovation to flourish at home, safeguard consumers, and strengthen America’s leadership in financial technology. The Senate should act now, because delay only increases the risk of falling behind.
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