Senator John Thune Elected As Senate Majority Leader, Crypto Community Optimistic

According to Cointelegraph, the cryptocurrency industry is optimistic about potential regulatory clarity in the United States following the election of Senator John Thune of South Dakota as the new Senate majority leader. Thune secured the position on November 13, defeating Senator Rick Scott of Florida, who had been endorsed by Elon Musk. In his victory speech, Thune emphasized his commitment to revitalizing the American economy by reducing bureaucratic hurdles and reversing costly regulations imposed by the Biden-Harris administration. Thune's election is seen as a positive development by the crypto community, as he has previously shown support for expanding the jurisdiction of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) over cryptocurrency regulation. This approach is viewed as an alternative to the current regulatory framework under the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In 2022, Thune co-sponsored the Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act (DCCPA), a bill aimed at extending the CFTC's regulatory powers over cryptocurrencies. The bill identified major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) as digital commodities, suggesting that the CFTC should be the primary regulatory authority, thereby challenging the SEC's current oversight. The crypto community has hailed the DCCPA as a significant step towards achieving regulatory clarity, although they acknowledge that further refinements are necessary. In addition, Thune voted in favor of overturning the SEC's Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 121 (SAB 11), which mandates that crypto custodians record customer assets as liabilities on their balance sheets. This stance has been highlighted by Coinbase's lobbying group, Stand With Crypto, which describes Thune as a "strong crypto supporter." Despite Thune's alignment with President-elect Donald Trump's priorities, Trump did not endorse any candidate in the majority leader race. Thune has previously criticized Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. Meanwhile, several of Trump's allies, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk, conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., supported Scott in the race. Scott has also been active in the crypto space, having collaborated with pro-Bitcoin Senator Cynthia Lummis to propose legislation allowing US retirement plans to include cryptocurrency investments. The crypto community remains hopeful that Thune's leadership will foster a more favorable regulatory environment for digital assets in the United States.