Hyperextension? Federal Financial Agencies & Cryptocurrency Regulation

In recent years federal executive branch agencies have enacted a “whole of government” approach to hot-button topics like environmental, social, governance (ESG) and cryptocurrency regulation. This theory of policy administration combines the efforts of multiple executive branch agencies with different expertise and authorities toward achieving a singular objective. Some of the agencies marshaled to address cryptocurrency regulation include the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and the banking regulators. Jurisdiction is often complicated by the nature of a particular asset, administration changes, and agency leaders’ personalities and priorities. How does current cryptocurrency regulatory policy align with the statutory authority and original purpose of these agencies? Are the agencies fulfilling legislative mandates to protect investors and promote safety and soundness? Or are they stretching their authority to achieve a policy outcome in the absence of legislative authorization? This panel will examine the issue of cryptocurrency regulation and statutory authority of executive agencies. Featuring: Mr. Brian P. Brooks, Partner, O’Melveny & Myers; Former Acting Comptroller of the Currency Prof. Chris Brummer, Agnes Williams Sesquicentennial Professor of Financial Technology, Georgetown Law Ms. Caitlin Long, Founder & CEO, Custodia Bank Prof. Christopher L. Peterson, John J. Flynn Endowed Professor of Law, University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law Moderator: Hon. Patrick J. Bumatay, United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit