U.S. Congressman Warren Davidson has touted the self-custody of cryptocurrencies as the antidote to crypto exchange FTX’s fraud. He is pushing for his bill called “Keep Your Coins Act,” which aims to “protect self-custody from misguided attempts to restrict it.”
U.S. Lawmaker Pushes for Self-Custody
Congressman Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) has touted crypto self-custody following the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. He tweeted Wednesday:
SELF-CUSTODY IS THE ANTIDOTE TO FTX’S FRAUD AND MY KEEP YOUR COINS ACT WOULD PROTECT SELF-CUSTODY FROM MISGUIDED ATTEMPTS TO RESTRICT IT.
“Anyone attacking self-custody is telling you they oppose individual freedom,” the lawmaker added.
Responding to a question on Twitter about why new laws are needed if people can already self custody today, the congressman replied:
CURRENT AND PREVIOUS TREASURY SECRETARIES HAVE DISCUSSED BANNING WHAT THEY CALL ‘SELF-HOSTED WALLETS’ — SELF-CUSTODY. SENATOR ELIZABETH WARREN AND NUMEROUS OTHER MEMBERS OF CONGRESS HAVE PROPOSED BANS. WE NEED TO POSITIVELY PROTECT IT TO DEFEND FREEDOM — LIKE THE BILL OF RIGHTS.
The congressman from Ohio announced his “Keep Your Coins Act” in February. Noting that the bill seeks to “preserve Americans’ right to privacy in transacting with crypto assets,” the lawmaker explained at the time that “Specifically, this legislation would prohibit any federal agency from promulgating a rule that would impair a person’s ability to act as self-custodian.”
Senator Elizabeth Warren unveiled a bill titled “Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act” last week. According to crypto advocates, it is “the most direct attack on the personal freedom and privacy of cryptocurrency users and developers we’ve yet seen.”
Last week, Davidson said he believes former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) was arrested before the House and Senate hearings took place because the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other regulators “did not want to give Congress an opportunity to ask SBF about their failed oversight.”
One lawmaker who recently suggested that crypto could be banned is Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), the chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee. However, he acknowledged that banning crypto “is very difficult because it will go offshore and who knows how that will work.”
Commenting on Senator Brown’s banning crypto suggestion, Rep. Davidson tweeted:
OHIO NEEDS A NEW SENATOR, THE SENATE BANKING COMMITTEE NEEDS A NEW CHAIRMAN, AND CONGRESS NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND ITS FAILURE TO ACT IS ACTIVELY EXPOSING CONSUMERS, INVESTORS, AND INNOVATORS TO AVOIDABLE RISK.
Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA), ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, concurred with Davidson. He has stressed that the idea of banning crypto is “profoundly misguided, not to mention impossible.” The senator from Pennsylvania emphasized: “Short of enacting draconian, authoritarian policies, cryptocurrency cannot be stopped. If we tried, the technology would simply migrate offshore.”