TechFlow reports that House Financial Services Committee Chairman Patrick T. McHenry, joined by over a dozen Republican lawmakers, sent a letter to SEC Chair Gensler requesting the agency turn over documents related to the licensing of digital asset firm Prometheum. In May, Prometheum became the first company to receive a special broker-dealer license approved by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) under SEC oversight, allowing it to custody digital asset securities.
McHenry said the timing of Prometheum’s license approval raises "serious concerns" as Congress works on cryptocurrency legislation. The approval came just one week before the House Financial Services Committee and the House Agriculture Committee held hearings to discuss their plans for proposed crypto regulatory bills. "The timing of this approval raises questions about whether it was intended to suggest that legislation is unnecessary because there is already a viable regulatory framework for custody of digital asset securities," he stated.
McHenry has requested responses from both FINRA and the SEC by August 22.
