US Democrat Maxine Waters Proposes to Regulate Stablecoins

Maxine Waters, the top Democrat Congresswoman has reportedly submitted a stablecoin regulation amidst bipartisan efforts.

Congresswoman Maxine Waters’ Stablecoin Regulation Proposal

Maxine Waters, who is a democrat from the House Financial Services Committee, released a draft proposal to regulate stablecoins, as per a report. This stablecoin regulation proposal outlines a framework that includes the role of key federal regulators, such as the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), alongside state regulators.

According to the report, the draft calls for stablecoin issuers to comply with certain reporting obligations and ensures that reserves for these coins are maintained on a one-to-one basis, ensuring full backing. 

The current draft is said to be shaped by Waters’ discussions with the former Committee Chair Patrick McHenry. Waters recently grabbed headlines when she shot a rebuke against Donald Trump’s memecoin $TRUMP launch, and calling it the ‘worst of crypto’.

Meanwhile, Republican Chair of the House Financial Services Committee, French Hill, and Representative Bryan Steil have also released their own draft legislation to regulate stablecoins. While both proposals are built on years of work, Hill and Steil’s version differs by granting the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency the authority to oversee and approve federally qualified nonbank stablecoin issuers, which is different from the Waters proposal, which includes a federal route via the Federal Reserve.

In addition to these developments in the House, stablecoin regulation efforts have also extended to the Senate. Senator Bill Hagerty, a Republican from Tennessee, recently introduced the “Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins” bill. This bill comes in at a time where the formation of a bipartisan working group, which includes members from the House Financial Services Committee, Senate Agriculture Committee, House Agriculture Committee, and the Senate Banking Committee, are also tasked with drafting rules for crypto and stablecoins.

Also Read: French Hill Calls for Regulatory Framework for Digital Assets