US Reps Hill and Steil Call for Digital Assets Legislation to ‘Unleash Innovation’

Digital asset legislation is needed in the U.S. to “unleash innovation” while protecting consumers and national security, two members of the House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) wrote in an op-ed posted Wednesday (Feb. 19) on the HFSC’s website.

Reps. French Hill, R-Ark., who is chairman of the HFSC, and Bryan Steil, R-Wis., who is chairman of the HFSC’s Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Artificial Intelligence Subcommittee, wrote in the op-ed that when it comes to digital assets and blockchain operations, “Washington has been asleep at the wheel for far too long.”

“There is little doubt that these innovations will make financial products more affordable and accessible,” they wrote. “From stablecoins to tokenization of assets, to decentralized finance applications, these advancements have the potential to lower costs and expand opportunities for both investors and consumers.”

Noting that Congress passed the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, Hill and Steil wrote that Congressional Republicans from both houses of Congress will now work with the Trump Administration and financial regulators to enact legislation for the digital assets and blockchain space.

Their immediate priorities include establishing a federal framework for stablecoins, providing clarity for the initial sale and distribution of tokens, enabling the registration of centralized platforms for trading tokens, implementing protections against money laundering and terrorist financing, and ensuring fair competition, Hill and Steil wrote.

They noted that they recently released a discussion draft to establish a framework for the issuance and operation of dollar-denominated payment stablecoins and that a Bicameral Working Group for Digital Assets has been formed.

“Effective legislation and proactive regulatory engagement will ensure good actors with innovative products can thrive in the U.S. and consumers are appropriately protected from rug pulls, market manipulation and other fraudulent activity,” Hill and Steil wrote in the op-ed.

The Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act passed in the House but did not make it through the Senate, PYMNTS reported in January. The bill would, among other things, set standards for digital assets and consumer protections.

In the House, the bill passed by a vote of 279 to 136, with 208 Republicans and 71 Democrats voting to approve it.