WASHINGTON — The top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee promised a reversal of Democratic financial-policy priorities should control of the House flip after the 2022 elections.
Speaking during the American Bankers Association’s annual Washington summit on Tuesday, Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., said that if Republicans win majority control of the House in the upcoming midterm elections, they would “unleash the free market” by pursuing innovation-friendly policies.
He also said that GOP lawmakers would seek “a lot more oversight of the financial regulators than what we've seen in this Congress.”
“What you'll see from Republicans on the Hill this year, and going into the next Congress, is we're going to continue to look for policy initiatives that unleash the free market and enable you to use new technology and new tools to reduce the cost of accessing credit and make it more available,” McHenry said in prepared remarks. “Artificial intelligence, bank and third-party partnerships, easier reporting requirements and more innovation will help everyone in this ecosystem — your customers as well as your shareholders.”
The North Carolina Republican also promised sharp scrutiny of the Biden administration’s banking regulators, arguing the GOP would be “the check and balance on the few of these regulators trying to run roughshod over a whole industry unchecked.”
In particular, McHenry accused Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra of pursuing a “really scorched-earth approach” with “his adoption of regulation by enforcement or intimidation.”
Without mentioning specific names, he also accused the Biden administration’s nominees to the Federal Reserve of wanting to “manipulate the financial services industry” into combating climate change. Senate Banking Republicans have
“It will be incumbent upon Republicans, next Congress, to lead the charge to expose these agencies and what they’re trying to do,” McHenry said.
House Financial Services Committee Chair Maxine Waters, D-Calif., also spoke during the summit on Tuesday, where she largely reviewed the recent policy focuses of the committee she has led since 2019, including the preservation of minority depository institutions.
But in a clear contrast to McHenry’s appeal to innovation, Waters told the audience that banks should be extremely cautious before working with the cryptocurrency sector and handling digital assets.
“The banking industry must consider the volatility of certain crypto products, like bitcoin, the lack of investor and consumer protections, and the environmental impact of some resource-intensive crypto technologies before proceeding any further,” Waters said.
Later in a question-and-answer session, McHenry told the audience that his caucus was looking closely into crypto as well, arguing that Congress — not the regulators — should set the early parameters for the industry, and for
“We have to define this space,” McHenry said. “Easiest, which is still not easy, is defining a stablecoin. I would say that Chairwoman Waters and I have about 80% agreement about the nature of a stablecoin and in the sphere of how you regulate that."
"A stablecoin ... should be backed by 100%, high-quality liquid assets,” he added.
