The Senate Agriculture Committee and two federal financial agencies pushed back crypto-related events this week after a winter storm disrupted parts of the United States. The committee moved markup of the Digital Commodity Intermediaries Act from Tuesday to Thursday (moved markup), and the CFTC and SEC postponed a joint event to Thursday (postponed a joint event).
The joint session will feature CFTC Chair Michael Selig and SEC Chair Paul Atkins, who will discuss “harmonization between the two agencies.” The CFTC also posted notice of the delay on its social account (posted).
Local reports described power outages, icy roads and canceled flights, and they used the phrase “treacherous road conditions.” (Ed. note: official notices did not explicitly cite the storm.) See one report from Washington, D.C. (reported).
This markup is the Senate’s second attempt to set crypto market rules after Republican leadership in the Senate Banking Committee canceled a previous markup. Chair Tim Scott canceled that event following a social post by Coinbase leadership saying the exchange “could not support the bill as written.”
Lawmakers on the Agriculture Committee are expected to consider 11 amendments, including one from Sen. Michael Bennet that would bar some candidates from engaging with digital assets (introduced). Passage from committee likely requires bipartisan support, and a potential government shutdown at month’s end could further delay progress.
