This bill creates a federal safe harbor for certain blockchain developers and providers of blockchain services. It says a developer or provider will not be treated as a money transmitter, a financial institution, or any other state or federal licensee or registrant unless that developer or provider "controls" digital assets that a user is entitled to in the regular course of business. The bill defines key terms: blockchain developer, blockchain network, blockchain service, control, and digital asset. It also says the bill does not change intellectual property law and that States may enforce laws that are consistent with the bill but may not enforce laws that conflict with it.
If you build or run blockchain software or a service and you do not have unilateral control over users' digital assets, this bill would say you are not a money transmitter or a financial institution under federal law and would not need related licenses or registrations under such designations. If your service can, on demand and without another party's approval, take actions that spend a user's digital assets, the bill says you would not qualify for the safe harbor. The bill also clarifies basic definitions so companies and users can know what "control" and "digital asset" mean under this law. States can still apply laws that match the bill but cannot enforce laws that conflict with it.
No publicly available information.
The bill's title and text indicate its sponsors intend to provide regulatory certainty and a federal safe harbor for non-controlling blockchain developers and providers by limiting when they are treated as money transmitters or financial institutions.
No publicly available information.