Editor’s note: Morning Money is a free version of POLITICO Pro Financial Services morning newsletter, which is delivered to our subscribers each morning at 5:15 a.m. The POLITICO Pro platform combines the news you need with tools you can use to take action on the day’s biggest stories. Act on the news with POLITICO Pro. House Republicans are speeding along in a major push to overhaul rules for crypto. I spoke Tuesday with Rep. French Hill, the Arkansas lawmaker who’s helping lead the effort. Here’s a quick update on the latest. The GOP leaders of the House Financial Services and House Agriculture committees are hashing out a bill that will attempt to reset the regulatory jurisdictions of the SEC and the CFTC in the crypto space. Members and staff have been ramping up behind-the-scenes discussions, and they’re holding a rare joint hearing this morning. The SEC likely has the most to lose. Hill told me that SEC Chair Gary Gensler has taken a “sweeping view” of which digital assets should be treated as securities. “It’s too sweeping,” he said. “But there’s no regulatory framework that clearly and easily and effectively makes the distinction.” The bill will try to address that by creating new definitions for what digital assets should be treated as securities, commodities or neither (what Hill calls “an other”). When will we see the details? Hill said to expect something in a few weeks. Staff for the two committees have worked over the past few weeks to develop “guiding principles” of a regulatory framework and to draft language that reflects those principles, according to Hill. The committees have also had two member-staff roundtables. It’s unclear whether the plan — or a separate House Financial Services-led bill on the regulation of stablecoins — will attract support from Democrats and become law. My colleague Eleanor Mueller reports that House Financial Services Republicans are still building consensus among their own members on the details of both bills. But the two efforts are shaping up to be Congress’s most earnest attempt to date to revamp laws for crypto. And so even if they stall out in the House before election season heats up, the proposals would be on the shelf for the next Congress to pick up. The stablecoin bill, which is a work in progress, has been seen as the lowest-hanging fruit in part because the Biden administration and financial regulators have called for Congress to set new rules. But will leaders of the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve accept the final product? Crypto advocates say that buy-in will be critical. Hill was cautious when I asked him whether it was a goal. “All I can say is we have carefully and routinely consulted with them for their advice and counsel as we’ve worked toward a draft,” Hill said. It’s Wednesday – Who are the most important under-the-radar players in debt limit negotiations and contingency planning? Let us know: Zach Warmbrodt, Sam Sutton.
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