A powerful US Senate committee, tasked with shaping major financial regulation, is reportedly pushing for the removal of crucial ‘safe harbor’ provisions from forthcoming comprehensive cryptocurrency legislation. These provisions are designed to shield developers of decentralized protocols from liability, particularly when they release open-source code without maintaining administrative control over the resulting network or handling user funds.
The pushback centers on concerns that these developer safeguards could create significant loopholes for illicit finance, including money laundering and sanction evasion. Lawmakers argue that granting blanket immunity complicates the regulatory landscape and makes it challenging to establish clear accountability when protocols are used for illegal activities.
Bills currently under consideration, such as modifications to the Responsible Financial Innovation Act (RFIA) framework, had initially sought to distinguish between passive code developers and regulated entities like centralized exchanges. The original intent was to foster innovation by preventing developers from facing legal risk simply for contributing to decentralized infrastructure.
Cryptocurrency advocacy groups and industry leaders have voiced strong opposition to the committee’s stance. They contend that stripping away safe harbors will severely stifle US innovation, forcing blockchain engineers and protocol builders to relocate to jurisdictions that offer more legal predictability. They assert that holding non-controlling code contributors liable is impractical and fundamentally misunderstands how decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and Web3 projects function.
The move signals a stricter regulatory posture from key legislative figures, prioritizing national security and consumer protection over developmental freedom, setting the stage for a major legislative battle as the bill advances toward a potential markup.
Source: US Senate panel wants developer safeguards out of crypto bill
コメント