Republican lawmakers say China’s recent crackdown on financial technologies could offer an opportunity for the U.S. to press its advantage in innovation.
China’s central …
Republican lawmakers say China’s recent crackdown on financial technologies could offer an opportunity for the U.S. to press its advantage in innovation. China’s central bank issued a statement Friday morning declaring all cryptocurrency transactions and services illegal, banning coin mining operations and vowing to crack down on its citizens’ use of foreign crypto exchanges. Several Republicans say China’s loss could be the United States’ gain. “As these innovators in China look elsewhere for opportunities, we need to make sure our regulators welcome crypto opportunities, not shun them, so we can bring all of those tech jobs leaving China to the United States,” Rep. Tom Emmer told the Daily Caller News Foundation. Emmer, who serves on the House Financial Services Committee and co-chairs the Blockchain Caucus, has pushed for laws designed to protect innovation in financial technologies like cryptocurrency, arguing digital assets will be an enormous benefit to the American economy. “Decentralized technology like blockchain and crypto is open source — so anyone, anywhere can access it, learn the underlying code, and build projects on it,” Emmer said.
