Coin Center

Introducing Peer-to-Peer, a new publication from Coin Center. We will use this space to highlight reporting and commentary on tech authoritarianism, surveillance, censorship, and the people building ways out. We invite you to join us in this movement and to stay informed. p2p.coincenter.org/p/peer-to-peer…

Appreciate Peter highlighting this as I was glad I got the opportunity to respond to this question from @RepMeuser and had a chance to sum up my thoughts generally on Congress’ role here.

In today's CLARITY hearing, @jasonsomensatto explains what's at stake with the BRCA. It's up to Congress whether CLARITY ends up only helping centralized crypto businesses without protecting the builders who make crypto useful in the first place. "Blockchain networks are not merely a new way to trade assets. At their best, they are open computing networks that allow individuals to hold and transfer value without depending on a bank, exchange, payment processor, or other centralized intermediary. They allow developers to build interoperable tools on shared infrastructure. They give individuals the freedom to transact peer-to-peer without being censored or unnecessarily surveilled, and they give developers the freedom to build novel infrastructure without asking permission. That is why developer protections are key to market structure legislation. If Congress creates clear rules for centralized cryptocurrency businesses but leaves developers exposed to open-ended liability for building non-custodial software, then the legislation will have protected part of the market while undermining the technology that makes the market possible."

Coin Center's Director of Policy, Jason Somensatto, will testify this morning at 10 before the House Financial Services, marking one year since the House passed the CLARITY Act (including the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act). Tune in—link to follow. Jason has worked on these regulatory questions from all angles since 2018: at the CFTC, in the private sector, and now at Coin Center. He understands better than almost anyone the importance—and the nuance—of clearly defining the line between trusted businesses and open innovation so that we protect investors without creating unnecessary barriers to speech, legitimate privacy interests, and innovation. This will be Jason's fourth congressional testimony since joining Coin Center last year. We're very fortunate to have his expertise and poise dedicated to our mission.

Something has shifted in the last few years... Digital rights groups have become very shy about cryptocurrency work even where regulation of those technologies directly impacts principles like code as speech and warrantless surveillance online. Crypto groups have become increasingly focused on institutional and financial markets questions and a bit less dedicated to the original mission: replacing government and corporate infrastructure with free and open peer-to-peer systems. We want to talk more about the peer-to-peer part and maybe earn some stronger alliances with the larger freedom tech movement. As a small first step, we're launching a new space to talk about tech authoritarianism and the peer-to-peer alternatives: Peer-to-Peer from Coin Center. Please subscribe and share.

There is a looming threat of tech authoritarianism around the world, where individual privacy and autonomy are being marginalized for control and profits by governments and corporations alike. We believe it’s important that you stay informed on these matters and on the solutions that exist to combat encroaching surveillance and censorship. Subscribe.

Coin Center has a new publication: Peer-to-Peer. We believe that open source, privacy protecting, and self sovereign tools are key to resisting tech authoritarianism. This is our vehicle for contextualizing our work in the larger tech policy world. p2p.coincenter.org/p/peer-to-peer…

📜Opening brief filed in @LewellenMichael's appeal for declaratory judgement that non-custodial software development is not money transmission and not a crime. 🇺🇸Coin Center supports his fight in the courts because promises from the admin are not enough, because Congress has yet to act (PASS CLARITY WITH THE BRCA!), and America is supposed to be a country of laws not men. ⚖️Lewellen is asking the 5th Circuit to tell us what the law of money transmission is. We should not need to rely on promises or the bad faith prosecutions of Tornado and Samourai devs in the SDNY to discover if software development is a crime.

The Coin Center Annual Dinner will be on Oct 6. Get your tickets and sponsorships in now. It sells out every year.

As I testified a couple of weeks ago, there is a fundamental mismatch between current IRS guidance on block rewards and how crypto networks actually operate. My recent blog continues our push in Congress, the courts, and with the admin to correct this.

Congress must understand: Block rewards are newly created property, not income. Some proposals merely defer income tax treatment for miners and stakers without doing anything about the underlying misconception coincenter.org/congress-must-…

A modern AML framework should reward institutions that can verify relevant facts with less data, fewer honeypots, and stronger privacy protections. coincenter.org/comment-to-fin…

Coin Center has filed a response to FinCEN and OFAC concerning AML/CFT programs and sanctions compliance for stablecoin issuers. We urge the agencies to do the following: 1. Recognize that overcollection of sensitive customer information can increase cybercrime, fraud, and downstream money laundering risks, undermining AML/CFT efforts and Americans’ privacy and security. 2. Permit issuers to use privacy-preserving digital identity tools where they produce auditable compliance outputs while minimizing data collection from direct customer onboarding. 3. Preserve the boundary between primary-market activity and secondary-market P2P transfers such that AML/CFT obligations do not go so far as to require public blockchain surveillance or the construction of identity-linked transaction dossiers, nor require issuers to independently adjudicate and freeze assets based on probabilistic analysis. 4. Use the Fourth and Fifth Amendments to guide the final rule in avoiding warrantless surveillance and the deprivation of Americans’ property without due process. coincenter.org/comment-to-fin…

Commissioner @HesterPeirce lists "code is speech" as the first principle guiding her thinking sec.gov/newsroom/speec…

Without the BRCA, Clarity becomes bill that helps the largest and most regulated businesses while leaving the builders of free and open infrastructure out in the cold. coincenter.org/the-brca-is-re…

Stripping the BRCA from Clarity would not make the bill tougher on industry. It would not address ethics concerns. All it would achieve is hurting open source developers. coincenter.org/the-brca-is-re…

Congress wants to extend wash-sale rules to crypto. Doing so would make everyday crypto use, DeFi, and multi-wallet tracking nearly unworkable. Summary of the issue in Tax Notes:

Coin Center is encouraged by the advancement of the Clarity Act through the Senate Banking Committee with the BRCA included. As it heads to the floor, there may be a push to make concessions; the BRCA cannot be one of them. coincenter.org/the-brca-survi…

HUGE. Looks like we got a non-partisan vote out of Senate Banking with the BRCA still intact. I'm thrilled. The last minute compromise reflects Coin Center's analysis from last January, there were some steps forward since then and then back but we are feeling very comfortable.

Our letter in support of passing the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act and with it the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, which we have championed since 2018.