Senate Cryptocurrency Infrastructure Bill: Latest News And Updates On Crypto Bill And Amendments


With the latest Senate Infrastructure Bill looming, cryptocurrency in the US could go through some significant changes in the near future.

The Bill has quickly become a key talking point within the cryptocurrency world.

Here’s the latest on the Infrastructure Bill's cryptocurrency provisions and its amendments.

Senate Crypto Infrastructure Bill Latest News And Updates

August 11: The Infrastructure Bill passed in the Senate 69-30 on Tuesday morning. It will now move over to the House of Representatives - which is in recess - before requiring a signature from President Biden.

August 10: The compromise amendment which reduces the scope of the broker 'definition' failed to pass, leaving many node operates vulnerable to reporting requirements in the bill's current form.

The amendment required unanimous approval in the Senate following previous delays. One Senator, Richard Shelby, held out and voted against the amendment - a decision related to previous objections to his own proposed $50bn defence spending amendment.

Cardano's founder Charles Hoskinson criticised Shelby in a live stream following the vote, while also calling for a rally in Washington DC.

August 9: The Senate vote on the Infrastructure Bill will take place this week, with the results set to come in by Tuesday, says Politico.

This comes after Senators voted 67-27 over the weekend for cloture - which restricts the debate on the $1tn bill. Disagreements over amendments slowed down the process. The final bill includes neither of the two cryptocurrency amendments.

What is the Cryptocurrency Infrastructure Bill?

Officially known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the upcoming Infrastructure Bill features a $1tn investment, with a large chunk of this going towards road and railway improvements.

As part of the offsetting for the Infrastructure Bill, it includes “strengthening tax enforcement when it comes to crypto currencies”, according to the White House fact sheet. This could raise up to $28bn in taxes across a 10-year period.

The proposed bill also included provisions that would mean any cryptocurrency transaction worth over $10,000 would need to be reported. It also adds further reporting requirements for cryptocurrency brokers.

These cryptocurrency restrictions faced a backlash from those in the crypto community. Blockchain Association, CoinCenter, Coinbase, Ribbit Capital and Square released a joint statement stating the Bill would “place unworkable requirements on crypto technology.”

Cryptocurrency Infrastructure Bill Amendments

The amendment proposed by the three Senators would reduce the scope of what defines a cryptocurrency broker.

Toomey explained the amendment on Twitter, stating: “By clarifying the definition of broker, our amendment will ensure non-financial intermediaries like miners, network validators, and other service providers are not subject to the reporting requirements specified in the bipartisan infrastructure package.”

Twitter’s Jack Dorsey expressed his opposition to the cryptocurrency provisions, giving support to the Wyden-Loomis-Toomey amendment.

Another amendment proposed by Senators Mark Warner, Kyrsten Sinema and Rob Portman also reduce the definition of a broker, exempting proof-of-work miners and wallet sellers.

This gained further legislative backing, with White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki stating it “strikes the right balance.”

However, it received criticism from those in the cryptocurrency community and the authors of the previous amendment. Pat Toomey stated the amendment “picks winners and losers based on the type of technology employed”, describing this as “horrible for innovation.”

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[Featured Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash]

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