Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed two new laws regarding digital assets

One regulates exchanges (ensuring fund security and cybersecurity);

The other regulates cryptocurrency ATMs (requiring registration, compensation for lost funds due to scams, a maximum fee of 18%, and a limit of $2,500 per day for new users).

In my opinion, these two laws have both pros and cons for retail investors like us.

Let's start with the good points:

Scammed funds can be refunded, which is almost a miracle in the crypto world; previously, it was all about taking risks on your own.

There is a cap on fees; 18% still hurts, but at least it’s not arbitrary gouging.

New user limits prevent people from going all-in right away, which can help stop newbies from falling into traps.

Now, for the bad:

The difficulty of making profits has increased; before, you could exploit price discrepancies or arbitrage with crypto ATMs, but now the limits are strict, and it's harder for new accounts to blend in.

Freedom has decreased; if you want to move large amounts of capital at will? Basically impossible.

Project teams face more pressure; with high compliance thresholds, small teams are directly shut out, only large companies can play.

This makes it increasingly difficult for us to take advantage of opportunities, but the security of funds will be somewhat better. In the future in the U.S., the crypto world will resemble a legitimate part of finance rather than a wild and unregulated area.

To summarize:

For profit-takers: opportunities are dwindling, need to find alternative paths.

For long-term holders: increased sense of security; at least with regulation, there’s less fear of black swan events.

For project teams: comply or get out; only the large firms will remain.