The SEC acknowledged applications for a spot BTC exchange-traded fund (ETF) from BlackRock Inc., WisdomTree, VanEck, and Invesco, according to documents posted to the agency’s website. This sets in motion a deliberation period during which time the SEC can approve the funds, deny them, or delay coming to a decision.

Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL) filed an amendment to the House National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would establish a working group to identify ways blockchain technology might improve efficiencies at the Department of Defense. The House NDAA is currently being considered on the House floor this week.

On July 13 US authorities arrested Alex Mashinsky, the former CEO of failed crypto lending platform Celsius Network, on fraud charges. The SEC, CFTC, and FTC are also pursuing civil enforcement actions against Mashinsky and Celsius. Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) tweeted about Mashinsky’s arrest, calling crypto a “Garden of Snakes.”

On July 13 U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres ruled in the SEC’s case against Ripple Labs that the blockchain firm’s XRP token was a security when it was sold directly to institutional investors, but not when it was sold on public exchanges. Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) tweeted support for the decision, just after requesting an investigation into the SEC’s “haphazard and heavy-handed approach to digital assets.”

Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) has drafted requests for two investigations into the license granted to Prometheum Ember ATS by SEC, allowing the company to act as a cryptocurrency exchange. Rep. Torres is questioning whether the issuance of Prometheum’s Special Purpose Broker Dealer (SPBD) license was a political ploy by the SEC rather than a meaningful effort to assimilate digital assets into the current regulatory architecture.

Sens. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) released their proposed bill to regulate the US crypto industry. The Responsible Financial Innovation Act of 2023 would require firms to segregate client assets and impose third-party custody requirements, create new advertising standards for marketing crypto, and require exchanges to show proof that they have enough assets to cover customer balances. The bill would also create a framework to give the CFTC more authority to oversee certain tokens, sanctions compliance, taxes, and stablecoin regulation.

U.S. District Judge Paul J. Barbadoro permanently barred LBRY Inc. from the crypto industry and ordered the company to pay a civil penalty of $100,000 for failing to register its digital token with the SEC. LBRY said that it will close entirely as a result.

Nearly two dozen groups wrote a letter to House Financial Services Chair Patrick McHenry, Agriculture Chair G.T. Thompson, and other lawmakers expressing opposition to the Digital Asset Market Discussion Draft bill. The groups warn that the bill has the potential to undermine the SEC’s authority over crypto and Wall Street.

Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-ID) wrote an open letter to crypto owners, experts, and other interested parties to solicit input on a wide range of questions regarding the taxation of digital assets. Questions in the letter include whether traders should be allowed to mark-to-market their digital assets, how the IRS might implement reporting requirements to identify crypto transactions that function as so-called wash sales, and what kind of tax treatment should apply to rewards earned in connection with activities like mining and staking. The lawmakers stated that responses will be accepted until September 8.