New House panel would be in charge of crypto legislation

Incoming House Financial Services Committee Chairman Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., has set up a digital assets subcommittee and put former banker Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., at its helm. 

The move to establish the subcommittee on crypto is part of McHenry's push to create a digital assets framework in the coming year. The subcommittee's aims include providing clear rules around digital assets and developing policies that further the use of financial technology to reach underserved communities.  

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

At the same time, McHenry dissolved the diversity and inclusion subcommittee that Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., created in 2019. 

Before he joined Congress, Hill was founder and CEO of Delta Trust & Banking Corp. in Little Rock, which later merged with Simmons First National Corp. Hill and McHenry have worked together on crypto policy before, specifically on the committee's financial technology task force, where Hill has served as ranking member. Most recently, the pair co-led a letter in October to Attorney General Merrick Garland requesting his assessment of whether legislation is necessary for a U.S. central bank digital currency.

Hill has put out several bills related to cryptocurrency, mostly focused on CBDC. Two, introduced in the last Congress, would have required the Treasury and the Federal Reserve to produce reports on CBDC. 

In other subcommittee leadership spots, Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Mo., was named the chair of the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, a coveted and prominent spot. 

Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., will be chair of the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Monetary Policy and Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-Mo., will lead the Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions. Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., will head up the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations and Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, will chair the Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance.