(BBC News) Lawmakers in the US have passed the country’s first major national cryptocurrency legislation.
It is a major milestone for the once-fringe industry, which has been lobbying Congress over regulation for years and poured millions into last year’s election, backing candidates that included Donald Trump.
The bill sets up a regulatory regime for so-called stablecoins, a kind of cryptocurrency backed by assets seen as reliable, such as the dollar. Trump is expected to sign the legislation into law on Friday, after the House passed the bill on Thursday, joining the Senate, which had approved the measure last month.
Known as the Genius Act, the bill is one of three pieces of cryptocurrency legislation advancing in Washington that is backed by Trump.
The president once derided crypto as a scam, but his opinion shifted as he won backing from the sector and got involved in the industry as a businessman, with ties to firms such as World Liberty Financial.
Supporters of the legislation say it is aimed at providing clear rules for a growing industry, ensuring the US keeps pace with advances in payment systems. The crypto industry had been pushing for such measures in hopes it could spur more people to use digital currency and bring it more into the mainstream.
The provisions include requiring stablecoins, an alternate cryptocurrency to the likes of Bitcoin, to be backed one-for-one with US dollars, or other low-risk assets. Stablecoins are used by traders to move funds between different crypto tokens.
The use of these coins, which are viewed as less volatile, has grown rapidly in recent years.
