Biden Vetoes Congressional Bid to Void SEC Crypto Guidance

(Bloomberg) — President Joe Biden vetoed a congressional resolution that would have overridden U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission guidance that he said hindered the crypto industry’s ability to work with banks.

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The guide, known as personnel accounting bulletin No. 121, has also attracted the reaction of banks since its publication in 2022. Lenders said this made it too costly, effectively restricting them from scaling up services to hold digital assets on behalf of customers.

The resolution, which passed the Senate with the support of 11 Democrats, would invalidate the SEC release. Lawmakers who supported the resolution, which passed the House by a vote of 228 to 182, said the guidance limited the options of Americans who want to store digital assets in traditional banks.

“My administration will not support measures that would jeopardize the well-being of consumers and investors,” Biden said in his veto message published on Friday evening. “Appropriate guardrails that protect consumers and investors are necessary to capitalize on the potential benefits and opportunities of crypto asset innovation.”

Read More: Senate Sets Veto by Repealing SEC Crypto Directive

Biden added in his statement that he is “willing to work with Congress to ensure a comprehensive and balanced regulatory framework for digital assets.”

While the White House announced earlier this month that it opposed House-passed legislation creating a regulatory framework for digital assets, it stopped short of threatening a full veto (arguing it lacked adequate consumer and investor protections), indicating the president is open to negotiating legislation leading the issue .

–With assistance from Amanda Iacone, Matthew Bultman, Andrew Ramonas and Ben Bain.

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