Social media sites around the net are on fire this week as a new draft has been proposed in the US, titled: America Competes Act. This bill is still in the early stages, but just like the Infrastructure Bill that passed, it contains wording that could be detrimental to the cryptocurrency industry.
The Biden administration’s bill still has many hurdles it must cross before being approved, but people are worried about the power it gives individuals to freeze or limit transactions by certain parties.
The bill has been created in a response to the growing issue of ransomware attacks in the US. In 2021, over $500m was paid out to hackers who managed to gain access to companies data storage devices.
The main issue many have with this new bill is the seemingly minimal checks it would need to issue limitations or freezes. It would give power to a small number of people who can decide which accounts they deem a primary concern over money laundering. The control over accounts would be given to the US Treasury Department, which is currently run by Janet Yellen, a vocal anti-cryptocurrency politician. Politicians like Janet Yellen do not believe in the future of blockchain technology and believe digital assets are only used for illegal activities.
Crypto friendly politicians like Congressman Tom Emmer took to Twitter to express their concern over the said bill. Coin Center, a non-profit organization that lobbies for blockchain technology was quick to educate people about it in hopes that citizens would contact their local representatives and express their concerns.
Cryptocurrency influencers across multiple social media platforms rapidly released posts and videos detailing their worries. The message from those adverse to this bill are concerned about which platforms, accounts and services could be quickly limited or frozen to US citizens.
Clearer cryptocurrency regulations and compliance could bring more institutional adoption and awareness but bad regulations and compliance could hinder the industry. Giving power to someone who does not understand cryptocurrency’s revolutionary technology could stunt decentralized finance and smart contract growth in the US.
This bill has a long way to go before it is approved and amendments can be made to protect the cryptocurrency industry. The US could lose ground on blockchain technology if the trend of negative regulations continues to grow.
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