#USHouseMarketStructureDraft The term "US House Market Structure Draft" likely refers to a **discussion draft of proposed legislation regarding the market structure for digital assets (including cryptocurrencies) in the United States, published by members of the US House of Representatives.**
According to recent reports today, May 6, 2025, and yesterday, May 5, 2025, it appears that House Republicans have introduced a new draft. This draft, led by members of both the House Financial Services Committee and the House Agriculture Committee, aims to provide regulatory clarity for the digital asset ecosystem.
**Key aspects of this recent draft include:**
* **Clarification of Digital Commodities:** Seeks to define "digital commodities" and proposes that transactions involving their sale in the secondary market not be classified as securities, provided they do not grant ownership or rights over the profits or assets of the issuer.
* **Decentralization Test:** The draft introduces a clear decentralization test, where no entity has unilateral control over the digital commodity. Meeting this test could exempt certain tokens from SEC scrutiny.
* **Stablecoins:** The draft defines stablecoins without categorizing them as securities.
* **Joint Rulemaking:** Emphasizes the need for joint rulemaking between the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) and the CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission) for digital assets.
* **Accredited Investor Checks:** The bill eliminates the need for accredited investor checks, which could simplify access to cryptocurrency investments.
* **Definition of Affiliate:** Reduces the threshold for defining an affiliate of a digital commodity issuer from 5% ownership in the FIT21 bill to 1%, which could curb the influence of large cryptocurrency firms.
* **DeFi Protocols:** Decentralized finance trading protocols that allow self-directed transactions would be exempt from registering as brokers or dealers of digital commodities.
This draft builds on previous efforts, including the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (FIT21), and aims to achieve a balance between consumer protection and fostering innovation in the digital asset space. It is currently a discussion draft, meaning it is open for comments and further refinement before potentially being presented as formal legislation.