The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is intensifying its investigation into alleged suppression of cryptocurrency businesses by requesting unredacted documents from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky) has formally requested that FDIC Acting Chairman Travis Hill provide complete, unredacted versions of the agency's "pause letters" and related communications sent to banks regarding crypto activities.
The move follows the FDIC's release of redacted documents last month detailing its supervision of crypto-related banking operations, including pause letters sent to 24 financial institutions.
The committee aims to examine potential regulatory overreach that may have unfairly targeted the crypto sector. Chairman Comer expressed worry that government regulators could have arbitrarily hindered industries they viewed unfavorably, affecting business operations by blocking access to basic banking services like payroll processing.
Acting Chairman Hill has previously criticized the FDIC's handling of crypto matters during the Biden administration, noting that the agency appeared unwilling to work with institutions interested in digital assets.
The oversight committee shares Hill's concerns that excessive regulatory barriers may have discouraged banks from engaging with cryptocurrency businesses. There are also worries that strict regulatory positions could push financial innovation and technology development overseas.
This investigation represents a broader examination of the relationship between financial institutions, government regulators, and their approaches to cryptocurrency-related activities in the United States banking system.