The possibility of crypto legal tender was given a boost last week, as the legislature of the US state of Pennsylvania moved to recognise the use of bitcoin as payment.
On Wednesday last week House Bill 2481, dubbed the Bitcoin Rights bill, was passed with strong bipartisan support in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
The bill offers a host of legal protections to holders and users of digital assets, including cryptocurrencies such bitcoin, helping pave the way for crypto legal tender.
It includes clauses preventing the state government from prohibiting or restricting the use of blockchain technology to purchase legal goods or services or keeping digital assets in self custody, as opposed to being held by a regulated financial institution.
It also forbids the state imposing additional taxation on digital assets, based solely on their status as a method of payment.
The bill passed with a vote of 176 to 26, with those in favour including 76 Democrats and in addition to unanimous backing from all 100 Republican members, Fox Business reported.
“In such polarising times, it’s great to see both sides of the aisle come together to further innovation and prioritise security for Pennsylvanians who own and transact with cryptocurrency,” said the bill’s sponsor Republican Pennsylvania state Rep. Mike Cabell.
According to Fox, 1.5 million residents in Pennsylvania now own some form of digital asset, amounting to 12% of the 13 million people who reside in the state.
A move towards crypto legal tender
The promising move for cryptocurrency advocates in the US comes as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) continues to take a cautious approach to digital assets.
Earlier this month the UK financial services regulator reiterated its rules against selling cryptocurrency products such as exchange traded funds (ETFs) to retail investors.
In doing so, the FCA is sticking to the line it first drew in March, when it confirmed it would not allow retail investors to trade in cryptoasset-backed Exchange Traded Notes (cETNs).
By contrast, the US’s Securities and Exchange Commission approved bitcoin ETFs for retail investors in January this year.
Only firms on the FCA’s Cryptoasset Firms register are allowed to offer crypto investing and trading services to UK customers. The 44 firms on the list (as 11/9/24), as well as information regarding their services, can be viewed here.
Robin has more than six years of experience as a financial journalist, most of which were spent at Citywire, and covers the latest developments in the investing, trading and currency transfer space. Outside of work, he enjoys reading literature and philosophy and playing the piano.
You can contact Robin at robin@goodmoneyguide.com
