FIT21: I’m Just a Bill

The U.S. House passed the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (FIT21), which marks the first time a major cryptocurrency bill has cleared one of the chambers of Congress. The issue now heads to the U.S. Senate, where hope is sure to wane because there's no counterpart bill. Indeed, the Democrats came out to join the Republicans in the House with 71 votes in favor of the bill, so bipartisan interest exists. However, as we know, thanks to Schoolhouse Rock, it’s still Just a Bill.

I'm just a bill, yes I'm only a bill

And I got as far as Capitol Hill

Well now I'm stuck in committee, and I sit here and wait

While a few key congressmen discuss and debate

Whether they should let me be a law

How I hope and pray that they will

But today I am still just a bill

Rightfully so, many believe it’s just political theatre for now. With the election around the corner, it seems highly unlikely anything will happen until after Inauguration Day and into 2025, although some action during the lame duck session is possible. In any case, if the primary themes of FIT21 pass the Senate and ultimately get signed into law, the legislation would establish a regime to regulate the U.S. cryptocurrency markets, setting consumer protections, installing the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a leading regulator of digital assets and the watchdog of the non-securities spot markets.

Regardless of where the chips fall, Apogee’s highly experienced CFTC/NFA and SEC consultants will be ready to lead digital asset managers into the new regulatory compliance frontier. For more information about Apogee’s suite of services, contact Scott Brindley at sbrindley@apogeecompliancellc.com.