Dima Zaitsev, Head of International PR at ICOBox, responds to the news of the impending ICO regulations
U.S. Rep. Warren Davidson (R) has broadcast his intention to introduce clear legislative framework to regulate Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and cryptocurrencies, as was recently reported by the Ohio news portal Cleveland.com.
According to Cleveland.com, the proposed bill would create an "asset class" for cryptocurrencies and digital assets, which "would prevent them from being classified as securities, but would also allow the federal government to regulate initial coin offerings more effectively."
The plan, if it ever comes to fruition, will bring very important and positive changes to the U.S. cryptocurrency market. From the very start, the industry operated in uncharted waters, with different countries and agencies treating tokens differently, which created confusion that eventually ground the ICO market to a halt. Introduction of a sensible and consistent legal framework will be instrumental for the industry's continued development, and the market has been eagerly waiting for just such a move for quite a while.
Both the politicians and crypto and financial market leaders have been urging the US Securities and Exchange Commission to come up with comprehensive regulations that would spell out the rules of the game and help stabilize the volatile and skittish market. Nearly 50 representatives of major crypto companies and Wall Street firms participated in a Congressional roundtable on ICO and cryptocurrency regulation. Davidson hosted the meeting, at which his guests expressed grave concerns about a lack of legal clarity in the marketplace and discussed "token taxonomy."
Davidson has been known as a supporter of the crypto and ICO industry, which, he said, requires "light touch." His spokesman recently said that Davidson is drafting a bill that, once it becomes law, would classify ICOs as products rather than securities at the federal and state level, essentially "sidestepping" security laws.
"I'm cautiously optimistic," says Dima Zaitsev, Head of International PR at ICOBox. "We've been waiting for someone to take things in their own hands, to champion the market, and it appears that the Ohio Congressman is just the guy for the job. This is exactly the kind of approach that the market wants, and this long-overdue law is certain to reverberate all over the globe. Of course, much depends on if and when it passes," Zaitsev added.
