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DC Blockchain Summit Brings Lawmakers, Big Players to Georgetown

The DC Blockchain Summit 2019 recently wrapped up, with key players mapping the direction of the industry and all eyes on the future of financial technology.

The event, hosted from March 6-7 by the Chamber of Digital Commerce and Georgetown University’s Center for Financial Markets and Policy, was the fourth annual in-person meeting to address the emerging trends. “For those building and investing in the blockchain industry, engagement with the policy community is paramount–and the DC Blockchain Summit is ground zero for many of these discussions,” said Matthew Roszak, chairman of the Chamber of Digital Commerce and co-founder of Bloq.

Among some of the speakers were U.S. Reps. Tom Emmer, Bill Foster and David Schweikert, co-chairman of the Congressional Blockchain Caucus. Another presenter, Colleen Sullivan, partner and CEO of CMT Digital, spoke about the rapidly changing nature of the digital token industry, one of the topics covered at the conference.

From Twitter:

Chamber of Digital Commerce‏ @DigitalChamber Mar 6
“How it looks today is how it’s not going to look tomorrow.” Colleen Sullivan on regulating digital tokens. #DCBlockchain Tune in: http://bit.ly/dc-blockchain

Chamber of Digital Commerce members from around the world gathered to address “how blockchain applications can serve as an engine for economic prosperity through trade finance, food supply chain management, healthcare, energy, digital identity solutions, tracking of ownership, and many others,” according to information from organizers.

Chamber of Digital Commerce Adds Advisor, New Executive Committee Members

The Chamber of Digital Commerce added Don Wilson, founder and CEO of DRW, to its board of advisors, the organization announced at the summit. It also added seven companied to its Executive Committee. They include:

  • Block.one
  • Cumberland
  • MakerDAO
  • Ownum
  • PwC
  • Quantstamp
  • TrustToken

Wilson is co-founder and a board member of ErisX and Digital Asset Holdings, according to information from the digital chamber. He also founded the proprietary trading company DRW.

“Don Wilson is a prominent figure in both traditional capital markets and the blockchain community, and we are honored to add his passion for blockchain technology and overall financial expertise to our team,” said Perianne Boring, founder and president of the Chamber of Digital Commerce, in a statement. “I’m also pleased to welcome our new Executive Committee members who will serve as strategic partners in achieving our mission toward advancing the long-term success of the blockchain ecosystem.

Congress Hard at Work Looking at FinTech Regs

Information from JD Supra highlights the many bills Congress members, including Rep. Emmer, are considering this year as blockchain, fintech and cryptocurrency continue to draw attention from stakeholders and event organizers.

Some of the bills under consideration are:

  • The Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (H.R. 528)
  • The U.S. Virtual Currency Market and Regulatory Competitiveness Act of 2019 (H.R. 923)
  • The Financial Technology Protection Act (H.R. 56)
  • Fight Illicit Networks and Detect Trafficking (H.R. 502 / S. 410)
  • The Homeland and Security Assessment of Terrorists' Use of Virtual Currencies Act (H.R. 428)
  • The Virtual Currency Consumer Protection Act of 2019 (H.R. 922)

“This spurt of legislative activity indicates an increased awareness by lawmakers of both the opportunities for innovation in these fields and the potential pitfalls and risks for illicit use posed by these new technologies,” reads the summary provided to JD Supra from Burr & Foreman.

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