U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) announced in a virtual hearing with the FinTech Task Force discussing central bank digital currencies (CBDDs) that she is forming a group of Democratic House members to tackle growing concerns about cryptocurrency.
Waters, chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee, said the group will work “to engage with regulators and experts to do a deep dive on this poorly understood and minimally regulated industry.” In a hearing last week, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) echoed a similar sentiment toward the crypto industry, referring to it as a “Wild West” in need of regulation.
Pressure for regulation comes on the heels of demand for a central bank digital currency backed by the Federal Reserve, which Warren said would “drive out bogus digital private money.”
Waters has long been critical of cryptocurrency and its unregulated nature, and last month’s cyberattacks against Colonial Pipeline, which paid a ransom in bitcoin (BTC, -0.61%), sparked new discussions about regulating crypto.