(WashingtonPost) The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs,
chaired by Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), is holding the first congressional
hearing on the future of Bitcoin. The first panel features senior
figures from the Obama administration. And their comments about Bitcoin
have been remarkably positive.
After the officials gave their opening statements, Carper’s first
question drew a parallel to the Internet. He pointed out that in the
early days of the Internet revolution, many people raised concerns about
illicit use of Internet technologies. Yet in the long run, he argued,
the Internet has had a hugely beneficial effect on peoples lives, making
possible previously unimagined services like Facebook and YouTube.
Carper wanted to know if the witnesses saw Bitcoin in the same light.
Jennifer Calvery, director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement
Network, agreed with Carper. “Innovation is a very important part of our
economy. It’s something for us to be proud of,” she said.
“We are attuned to the criminal use,” added Mythili Raman of the
Justice Department. But “there are many legitimate uses. These virtual
currencies are not in and of themselves illegal.”
“There is good reason for us to remain watchful” about Bitcoin being
used for illicit purposes, Raman added. “But we also intend to balance
that against the need for legitimate users” to use the technology.
Later in the same panel, Edward Lowery of the Secret Service
testified that cyber criminals “have not by and large gravitated toward
peer-to-peer cryptocurrencies.” Rather, they “have by and large
gravitated toward centralized digital currencies that are based in a
locale that may have less regulatory guidelines and less aggressive law
enforcement.”
That’s been the tenor of the entire hearing so far. All three Obama
administration officials expressed concern about Bitcoin being used for
illicit uses. But they also stressed that Bitcoin has important
legitimate uses and that regulators need to be careful not to stifle
innovation in virtual currencies. And they seemed to believe that the
situation was under control, and none asked for new regulatory powers to
crack down on illicit uses of the currency.
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