Coin Center appeals to Senate to preserve blockchain developer immunity legislation
The advocacy group draws parallels between internet service providers and cryptocurrency developers, contending both should receive equal legal protection when bad actors exploit their platforms.
A cryptocurrency advocacy organization known as Coin Center has submitted correspondence to the United States Senate Banking Committee, calling on lawmakers to advance legislation aimed at shielding honest blockchain developers from criminal prosecution.
Originally introduced by Representative Tom Emmer in the House during September 2018, the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (BRCA) received an updated draft last month courtesy of Senators Cynthia Lummis and Ron Wyden, designed to establish clear legal guidelines confirming that software creators and infrastructure operators who lack custody over user assets should not be classified as money transmitters according to federal regulations.
In correspondence addressed to the Senate Banking Committee and made public on Tuesday, Coin Center's policy director Jason Somensatto emphasized that the United States cannot expect blockchain technology to flourish domestically if software developers remain under perpetual threat of criminal charges, asserting they merit identical legal safeguards afforded to conventional internet software developers.
"This is the same type of activity conducted every day by internet service providers, cloud hosting services, router manufacturers, browser developers, and email providers," he said, adding that "we do not threaten those actors with prison when a criminal uses the internet, sends an email, routes traffic, or uploads files."
"The same principle must apply to blockchain developers."
Somensatto went on to explain that the "BRCA ensures that the next Satoshi Nakamoto, Vitalik Buterin, or Hayden Adams is able to develop the very systems that a market structure bill is designed to promote and protect."
Operating as a non-profit research institution and advocacy organization headquartered in Washington, DC, Coin Center concentrates its efforts on policy matters concerning cryptocurrency and decentralized computing technologies.
Multiple cryptocurrency developers faced prosecution in the United States during the previous year
The organization's campaign to secure legal protections for cryptocurrency developers, timed to align with the CLARITY Act, emerges following a series of prominent prosecutions involving blockchain developers throughout the previous year.
Among those prosecuted were Roman Storm, a developer who worked on Tornado Cash, along with Keonne Rodriguez and Will Lonergan Hill, the co-founders behind Samourai Wallet.
The trio each faced conviction on charges of conspiring to run an unlicensed money transmission operation during 2025. Rodriguez received a five-year prison term while Lonergan Hill was sentenced to four years behind bars, both in November, whereas Storm continues to await his scheduled sentencing hearing.
Diluting BRCA protections risks driving developers away
Currently, the Senate Banking Committee continues its examination of the most recent BRCA proposal. The legislation has yet to undergo markup procedures or receive a committee vote.
According to Somensatto, any attempt to eliminate or diminish the protective measures outlined in the BRCA would create an environment of legal ambiguity for cryptocurrency developers, which could discourage well-meaning software creators from maintaining operations within United States borders and instead compel them to relocate their activities to foreign jurisdictions.