And finally there was a new ethics provision that didn’t even cover the President. or V.P. It’s nice that Senators are willing not to launch their own stablecoins; one wishes they’d prevent the President from doing so.

Plus, anti-money laundering provision simply called for more research instead of giving Treasury the additional authority it needs.

The federal standard and supervision in the stablecoin bill would not have applied to foreign issuers nor to many large state-chartered issuers, nor to decentralized activity which was defined way too broadly.

The fact that the stablecoin legislation did not advance to a final vote should not surprise anyone who has actually read the latest version. Particularly because of recent changes, it would have created an illusion of meaningful federal regulation but not the reality.

Senate stablecoin bill ( "GENIUS Act") is slightly better than House version but both significantly weaker than bipartisan proposal from fall ("McHenry-Waters" see https://t.co/q1xqw0RNdU ) and weaker than EU and other G20 laws. US should lead, not buckle to crypto lobbyists!

I testified on Feb 26 before the Subcommittee on Digital Assets of Senate Banking Committee

This was a great conference last year and I’m sure it will be this year. Really looking forward to it!

Mike was humble and wise.  And his warmth, his smile, and outgoing nature made you want to work with him, and grab a beer afterward.  I am also grateful for the times we got together  after we both left the agency. My deepest sympathies go out to his wife, Kristina, and family.

I join many former CFTC colleagues and others mourning the tragic passing of Mike Gill.  During my tenure as Chairman, Mike was a primary reason why we were able to accomplish so much on a bipartisan basis.  He was always constructive, and always working to bring people together

Instead, Congress mandates SEC and CFTC to create common standards through an SRO. Applies to all trading and lending platforms that deal in bitcoin and ether--no need to create new "digital asset" categories. See

I testified before House Ag Subcommittee today and proposed a simple way to clarify regulation of crypto and improve investor protection.  Don’t try to rewrite securities law--that's likely to create more confusion. And don’t bifurcate the market.. . .

Join us @ColumbiaLaw on Feb. 14 for a great discussion on "Crypto Trading: Finance or Gambling?"@TBakerBroadmoor @LindaJeng1 @baerheel @timmassad @Columbia_Biz Register here: https://t.co/odmjePKRwZ

Those who profess shock at SEC Kraken case sound like Louis the cop in Bogart movie Casablanca: “I’m shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on here!” Should be obvious that offering a return to investors for depositing crypto for staking is an investment contract.

Former SEC chair Jay Clayton and I discuss how regulators can improve crypto regulation in a new WSJ op-ed:

A self regulatory organization could be created and tightly supervised by the SEC and CFTC today under existing law. Industry would pay for it also. See

Crypto regulation doesn’t have to be bogged down by the “is it a security or a commodity” debate nor do we need to wait for Congress to act. Prof. Howell Jackson and I have just published a paper explaining how the SEC and the CFTC could create a joint SRO.

Really enjoyed being on Odd Lots to discuss how we can regulate stablecoins now without new legislation. Excellent questions from Tracey and Joe. See Brookings website for paper I wrote with Howell Jackson -Harvard Law School- and Dan Awrey -Cornell Law

I will be hosting a webinar with Under Secretary of the Treasury Nellie Liang on Tuesday, Sept. 20 at noon to discuss the just released reports under the White House Executive Order on Digital Assets. See

The Future of Money and Payments with the Honorable Nellie Liang, Under Secretary @USTreasury for Domestic Finance 9/20/22 @ Noon Virtual (Zoom) W/ M-RCBG's @timmassad Hear about the future of money & payments, including central bank digital currencies https://t.co/OkOWAs5gRp

I can’t believe they used that picture of me…