US Senator Elizabeth Warren from the Democratic Party warned on Thursday about what she called “the highly opaque and volatile” cryptocurrency environment. According to Reuters, via US News, senator Warren says there are growing risks for consumers when investing in such kind of markets because of its lack of Regulation — something she also has criticized.
“While demand for Cryptocurrencies and the use of cryptocurrency exchanges have sky-rocketed, the lack of common-sense regulations has left ordinary investors at the mercy of manipulators and fraudsters,” Warren pointed out in a statement. The Senator, who leads the Senate Banking Committee’s Subcommittee on Economic Policy, has already sent a letter to Gary Gensler, the US Securities and Exchange (SEC) Chairman, to address the need to regulate the crypto market.
In fact, Warren urged Gensler to provide her with an answer by setting up a deadline on July 28. “These regulatory gaps endanger consumers and investors and undermine the safety of our financial markets. The SEC must use its full authority to address these risks, and Congress must also step up to close these regulatory gaps,” she added.
Powell, Yellen Already Cautioned on Cryptos Risks
The Democratic Party senator joins other high-level voices in issuing warnings on cryptos, such as Jerome Powell, Chairman of the Federal Reserve, and Janet Yellen, US Treasury Secretary, who already suggested that virtual currencies pose a risk to financial stability. “The lack of regulation to provide basic investor protections is unsustainable,” Warren noted.
On the other hand, at the end of 2020, the first-ever woman Senator elected from Wyoming, Cynthia Lummis, unveiled her plans to discuss Bitcoin with other senators to increase understanding about digital assets. “In my opinion, it should not surprise anyone that Wyoming has become the leader in policy toward BTC and creating state policies that have nurtured our ability to actually charter banks that can transact banking business in Bitcoin,” Lummis said at that time.
