CoinDesk’s Money Reimagined

Crypto in Congress 2022: Rep. Darren Soto

A representative perspective on the state of crypto legislation.

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This episode is sponsored by Quantstamp and Nexo.io.

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“We can’t use 1920s to 1940s definitions in securities laws for digital assets … We need to bring our laws into the 21st century,” Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.) says.

Cryptocurrency has emerged as a topic around which representatives from both sides of the aisle can create coalitions with aligned interests and values while constructively disagreeing on other matters. Last year, Rep. Tom Emmer (R-Minn.), a co-chairman of the Congressional Blockchain Caucus, joined “Money Reimagined” to discuss how crypto is being received in Congress.

In this episode, hosts Michael Casey and Sheila Warren are joined by Soto, the second co-chairman of the caucus, to provide a Democrat’s perspective on the state of crypto legislation. Soto introduced two bipartisan bills last summer, the Blockchain Innovation Act and parts of the Digital Taxonomy Act, which were the first blockchain bills to ever pass the House as part of H.R. 3723, the Consumer Safety Technology Act.

Soto explains the many challenges facing crypto’s advocates in Washington, from educating colleagues to outdated securities laws. With representatives like Soto and Emmer pushing for more education, recognition and legislation for crypto, will 2022 bring more certainty and jurisdiction to the industry?

This episode was produced and edited by Michele Musso with announcements by Adam B. Levine and additional production support by Eleanor Pahl. Our theme song is “Shepard.”

HOSTS

Michael J. Casey

Michael J. Casey is Chairman of The Decentralized AI Society, former Chief Content Officer at CoinDesk and co-author of Our Biggest Fight: Reclaiming Liberty, Humanity, and Dignity in the Digital Age. Previously, Casey was the CEO of Streambed Media, a company he cofounded to develop provenance data for digital content. He was also a senior advisor at MIT Media Labs's Digital Currency Initiative and a senior lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management. Prior to joining MIT, Casey spent 18 years at The Wall Street Journal, where his last position was as a senior columnist covering global economic affairs.

Casey has authored five books, including "The Age of Cryptocurrency: How Bitcoin and Digital Money are Challenging the Global Economic Order" and "The Truth Machine: The Blockchain and the Future of Everything," both co-authored with Paul Vigna.

Upon joining CoinDesk full time, Casey resigned from a variety of paid advisory positions. He maintains unpaid posts as an advisor to not-for-profit organizations, including MIT Media Lab's Digital Currency Initiative and The Deep Trust Alliance. He is a shareholder and non-executive chairman of Streambed Media.

Casey owns bitcoin.

Michael J. Casey