A bipartisan movement of US lawmakers is considering creating new legislation to regulate crypto-currencies, sparked by growing interest – and therefore cryptocurrency worldwide, according to Reuters.

There is currently no single body responsible for overseeing cryptocurrencies in the United States – responsibility is divided instead between individual states, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodity La SEC and the CFTC held a joint hearing on February 6 on their roles in cryptocurrencies, Blockchain technologies and initial coin offerings (CFTC), the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve ICO). The general conclusion was that the two organizations would work together to create a regulatory framework, with the strictest regulations for ICOs and the loosest for blockchain technology and digital ledger.

The hearing also concluded that cryptocurrencies would require protective regulation against market manipulation and fraud.

Republican Senator Mike Rounds, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, was invited to join the debate on crypto regulation because of the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies:

"Six months ago, we did not see this explosion.The market has changed."

Rounds told Reuters, that while there a, " no question about the fact that there is a need for a regulatory framework ", he sees a possibility that crypto be regulated both as a commodity and a security .

The global debate over whether cryptocurrencies and ICOs should be regulated as securities has already resulted in concrete legislation. On February 17, the Swiss Financial Authority issued a set of guidelines to help determine whether an ICO and its tokens should be regulated by securities legislation.

Mixed Signals

Two days ago, on February 16, Special Assistant President and Cyber ​​Security Coordinator for the White House, Rob Joyce, told CNBC that the general regulation of cryptocurrencies is something not yet " close " as they were still in the " study and understanding " stage of regulation.

However, Reuters reports that US lawmakers are beginning to call for legislation that would put digital currencies under SEC's rules for investor protection for securities, this new desire brought on by the steady growth of crypto markets.

Republican Representative Bill Huizenga, Chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets – who will hold hearings soon on this topic – told Reuters that the SEC is correctly head on the question . "

Democrat Carolyn Maloney, a senior m The member of the House Financial Services Committee agrees with Huizenga's view that the SEC should be the crypto regulatory body, declaring to Reuters: " many people do not realize that there is nothing of these virtual currencies .

Even Republicans "free-marketers" like Dave Brat, a member of the House Freedom Caucus, are ready to support regulatory legislation:

"If it's a currency that could destabilize the entire economy economy, you are going to have this conversation. "

Despite this early call for regulation, lawmakers will still protect groundbreaking technological innovations like Blockchain , Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, told Reuters: