McHenry on the House Floor: FIT21 Will Cement the United States’ Global Leadership in Technological Innovation, Invention, and Adoption
The FIT for the 21st Century Act represents an unprecedented joint effort to provide comprehensive federal guardrails for the U.S. digital asset ecosystem
Washington,
May 22, 2024 -
Today, the Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Patrick McHenry (NC-10), led Republicans on the House floor as lawmakers debated H.R. 4763, the Financial Innovation and Technology (FIT) for the 21st Century Act. FIT21 provides the robust, time-tested consumer protections and regulatory certainty necessary to allow digital asset innovation to flourish in the United States.
Watch Chairman McHenry’s remarks here.
Read Chairman McHenry’s remarks as prepared for delivery:
“Today, Congress will establish a new high-water mark for digital asset policy.
“To be clear, this joint effort between the Financial Services Committee and Agriculture Committee did not come together overnight—far from it.
“We’ve formed subcommittees, convened working groups, heard from countless stakeholders, and received input from members across the ideological spectrum.
“Last July, we passed the bipartisan Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, or FIT21, out of our respective committees.
“Each step in this process has created a new high-water mark.
“The next step will be a broad bipartisan vote today to finally provide the robust consumer protections and clear regulatory framework established by FIT21.
“FIT21 will cement the United States’ global leadership in technological innovation, invention, and adoption.
“Unfortunately, our current regulatory framework is preventing digital asset innovation from reaching its full potential.
“The SEC and the CFTC are currently in a food fight for control over this asset class. They have created an impossible situation where the same firms are subject to competing and contradictory enforcement actions by the two different agencies.
“FIT21 fixes this by creating a regulatory framework that will provide clear rules of the road and strong guardrails for the Americans engaging with the digital asset ecosystem.
“At its core, FIT21 applies time-tested consumer protections to ensure the 20 percent of Americans who engage with the digital asset ecosystem, can do so safely.
“Today, we have the opportunity to answer the calls of consumers, digital asset innovators, and the Biden Administration.
“We can establish the next high-water mark for digital assets.
“I urge my colleagues to support consumer protection, innovation, and American leadership by voting for FIT21.”
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