As the United States Congress weighs key legislation that could reshape the regulatory framework for digital assets, top crypto executives, policy advocates and former regulators are set to testify before the Senate Banking Committee.
On Wednesday, lawmakers with the US Senate Banking Committee will hear from Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, former Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) member and Blockchain Association CEO Summer Mersinger, former CFTC Chair Timothy Massad, Chainalysis CEO Jonathan Levin, and others to address digital asset markets.
The hearing will mark one of the first times US lawmakers could offer a preview of how the Senate will handle a crypto market structure bill after its leadership said it aimed to pass legislation by October.
“We are at a critical inflection point,” said Mersinger in prepared testimony. “The choice before us is not whether to regulate this industry, but how. We can either continue down a path of uncertainty that cedes our leadership and exports this innovation to other countries, or we can enact sensible, bipartisan legislation that cements our position as the premier destination for financial innovation for decades to come.”
Republican leadership in the House of Representatives announced on Thursday that they intended to tackle three pieces of crypto-related legislation starting on Monday as part of a regulatory “Crypto Week.”
Among the bills are the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins, or GENIUS Act, passed by the Senate in June, and the Digital Asset Market Clarity, or CLARITY, Act, under consideration in the House. The chamber will also address legislation to halt the development of a US central bank digital currency, or CBDC.
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Potential conflicts of interest could still cast a shadow on legislation
The hearing will be one of Garlinghouse’s first direct appearances before US lawmakers amid Ripple’s growing involvement in policy discussions in Washington, D.C. The blockchain company donated $5 million worth of XRP to US President Donald Trump’s inaugural fund, and Garlinghouse appeared at a White House crypto summit in March.
Richard Painter, a former White House ethics lawyer, will also testify at the hearing, suggesting lawmakers could address concerns over Trump’s potential conflicts of interest in legislation related to digital assets.
The US president issued his own memecoin in January, ahead of his inauguration. In addition, he and his family are tied to the crypto company World Liberty Financial, including its stablecoin, USD1.
During the first Senate vote for the GENIUS Act in May, several Democrats withdrew support for the stablecoin bill, raising concerns about Trump’s crypto ventures. Though the bill later passed with Democratic support, some lawmakers have suggested they will continue to take action regarding concerns over Trump’s ties to the industry.
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