McHenry urged the Senate to approve the FIT21 crypto bill before the election

Outgoing Republican US Representative Patrick McHenry has pushed the Senate to pass a key crypto-regulating bill ahead of the November presidential election.

The Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (FIT21) was passed on May 22 by 71 Democrats and 208 Republicans.

“This should be a wake-up call for the Senate,” the House Financial Services chairman, who will retire from Congress in January, told Bloomberg Balance of Power on May 30.

They should focus on getting policy here and implement it before the elections.

The bill paves the way for most cryptocurrencies to be classified as commodities and regulated under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

The crypto industry sees the CFTC as a more pro-crypto regulator than the Securities and Exchange Commission — although the SEC will still have insufficiently decentralized jurisdiction over cryptocurrencies.

McHenry said the first thing he heard from the Senate about FIT21 was the “wide margin” that passed the House. The bill has seen opposition from the SEC and President Joe Biden.

“It is a big statement that we need to pass this important law, FIT21, by a two-thirds vote in the House of Representatives in these divided times.”

He added, “We came here to make a tough policy.” “We want to have a regulated digital asset and cryptocurrency here in the United States.”

Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer leads the Senate's 48 Democrats with all three independent members of the House — compared to 49 Republicans.

There are no deadlines for when the Senate must act on FIT21. A majority — 51 senators — must vote for approval.

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McHenry said he was working with Democrat Rep. Maxine Waters to get the stablecoin bill, which he acknowledged would take two years to pass and be attached to larger legislation to pass the Senate.

He touted the idea of ​​linking the stablecoin account to the SAFER Banking Act, which would allow cannabis companies greater access to financial services.

“I do not support the cannabis banking bill. I voted for it in the last two Congresses,” McHenry said.

He added that Republicans will “pressurize Schumer and the Senate in any way we can” to make passing the crypto bill a priority.

The United States presidential election is expected to be held on November 5.

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