Republicans urge action on market structure bill over debanking claims

Republican lawmakers on the US House Financial Services Committee and House Oversight Subcommittee have released a final report on what they called “debanking of digital assets,” claiming that the previous administration was responsible for cutting off access to financial services for some crypto companies and individuals.

In a Monday notice, House Financial Services Chair French Hill and Oversight Subcommittee Chair Dan Meuser claimed that regulators under the administration of former US President Joe Biden “used vague rules, excessive discretion, informal guidance, and aggressive enforcement actions to pressure banks away from serving digital asset clients” — actions many Republicans have referred to as “Operation Choke Point 2.0.”

The report concluded that legislative action, among other measures, was necessary to provide clarity for the cryptocurrency industry. Hill and Meuser said, “Congress must enact digital asset market structure legislation,” known as the CLARITY Act, and other bills targeting the cryptocurrency industry.

“Overall, the CLARITY Act heads off a future Operation Choke Point 3.0 by reversing the SEC’s regulation by enforcement approach, enabling market participants to lawfully operate in the US under clear rules of the road, and making clear that banks may engage in the digital asset ecosystem,” said the report.

The Digital Asset Market Structure bill, which was passed by lawmakers in the House of Representatives in July, is under consideration in the Republican-led Senate Agriculture Committee and the Senate Banking Committee, both of which have released their versions of draft legislation. Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott said in November that the committee planned to have the bill ready for signing into law by early 2026. 

Related: How market structure votes could influence 2026 crypto voters

Cointelegraph reached out to House Financial Services Committee ranking member Maxine Waters for comment on the report, but had not received a response at the time of publication. 

Claims of debanking by regulators with the FDIC, Fed, OCC and SEC

Many individuals connected to the cryptocurrency industry or who hold digital assets have reported receiving letters from financial institutions saying that they would no longer be allowed to use their services. According to the report, “at least 30 entities and individuals engaging in digital asset-related activities” were debanked in some fashion by US regulators under the Biden administration.

Among the measures, the report claimed that regulators enacted to debank crypto companies or individuals included the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) sending “pause” letters for financial institutions to encourage clients to sever ties to digital assets, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) laying out “additional red tape for digital asset-related activities,” and the Securities and Exchange Commission using “regulation by enforcement tactics” to target crypto companies.