Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis Provides Insight Into Bipartisan Bitcoin Bill

Legislation and The Crypto Space Are At Odds

Addressing the concerns faced by the Bitcoin community, Lummis elaborated on how the success of Bitcoin has pushed officials to apply regulations toward digital assets. For instance, in 2021, the BTC community was disrupted by the announcement of a new infrastructure bill. 

The bill established the requirement for KYC on users sending more than $10,000 BTC or other cryptocurrencies. As the nature of Bitcoin prevents any kind of information from being collected, this raised concerns amongst users. 

"There were some concerns about whether BTC and crypto exchange would partake in sanctions enforced on Russia. However, the Bitcoin community has been actively participating."

She argues, that many legislators and other officials have become increasingly welcoming of passing favorable rules toward Bitcoin. Lummis added that Senator Kristen Gillibrand of New York and other politicians as well have started becoming favorable toward cryptocurrencies. 

Bitcoin or Fiat Currency?

Santori questioned Lummis concerning the latest developments toward a U.S. CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency). In response, Lummis stated that more than thinking about the adoption of CBDC, most people are thinking about the pros and cons. 

"One of the things that are helping to define the debate is the digital yuan. It's being used as a tool of surveillance, and U.S Senate and the Fed are aware of it."

Alleviating the concern of the Bitcoin 2022 Conference's crowd, Lummis explains that a digital product could become a stablecoin if it's directly used by consumers. 

"I think that's a much more American way of adopting this technology is backed by the U.S. dollar, as opposed to a CBDC direct to consumer."

Discussing the adoption of Bitcoin over fiat currency, the U.S. Senator shared an instance of when she asked a Ukraine citizen what they would opt for - Bitcoin or fiat currency?

The Ukraine resident stated that presently Bitcoin has been helping them in purchasing medicines, water, and food. Therefore, he felt that this wouldn't be possible with the help of fiat currency.