WASHINGTON, D.C.—Representative Warren Davidson (R-OH) sent a letter to the Department of the Treasury today strongly encouraging Treasury Secretary Mnuchin to consult with Congress before issuing new regulations that govern the use of digital self-hosted wallets.

Self-hosted wallets enable their users to make peer-to-peer transactions with digital assets without the need for a bank or third party to process the transaction. The letter from Davidson comes amid rumors on Capitol Hill that Secretary Mnuchin plans to issue new guidance that would require certain disclosures revealing the owner of self-hosted wallets. In the letter, Davidson said that the regulation would “hinder American leadership and preclude meaningful participation in the technological innovation currently underway throughout the global financial system,” and that it “could undermine the Treasury Department from stopping illicit actors . . . while it would raise privacy concerns and place impractical regulatory burdens on digital asset users and companies.”

Davidson was joined by fellow Financial Services Committee members Rep. Tom Emmer (R-MN) and Ted Budd (R-NC) as well as Foreign Affairs Committee member Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) in sending the letter.
Rep. Davidson made the following statement after sending the letter:

“Before Treasury issues midnight rules on the regulation of self-hosted wallets, Secretary Mnuchin should come to the Peoples’ House and speak to representatives about what his regulations would do. Over-regulating self-hosted wallets will crush a nascent industry and leave the Unites States behind the rest of the world when it comes to harnessing the power of blockchain and cryptocurrency.

"The wrong regulations will violate the financial privacy of users and send a message to the world that you shouldn’t build businesses or try new use cases for blockchain in the United States. I hope Treasury will carefully consider any action it takes on self-hosted wallets. I look forward to working with Secretary Mnuchin on this important issue for U.S. financial technology."