Key Takeaways
- Senator Cynthia Lummis says the Fed's rollback of Bitcoin banking guidance is not real progress.
- Lummis points out the Fed still labels Bitcoin as 'unsafe and unsound' under existing policy.
- Other crypto leaders, like Michael Saylor, praised the Fed's announcement as a positive move.
United States Senator Cynthia Lummis criticized the Federal Reserve’s April 24 decision to withdraw its 2022 supervisory letter discouraging banks from engaging with Bitcoin and stablecoin activities, calling it…
… just noise, not real progress.
The Fed withdrawing crypto guidance is just noise, not real progress. We are NOT fooled. The Fed assassinated companies within the industry and hurt American interests by stifling innovation and shuttering businesses. This fight is far from over.
— Senator Cynthia Lummis (@SenLummis) April 25, 2025
Lummis’ concerns
In an April 25 post on X, Lummis said the move amounts to little more than lip service.
While figures like Strategy founder Michael Saylor and entrepreneur Anthony Pompliano praised the Fed’s action as positive for banks and Bitcoin, Lummis pointed out persistent problems in the regulatory environment.
Regulatory issues highlighted
She emphasized that the Fed continues to “illegally flout the law on master accounts” and still uses reputational risk in its bank supervision policies.
This remains an issue even as the FDIC works on a rule to eliminate reputational risk considerations, according to Bloomberg.
Section 9(13) policy and Operation Chokepoint 2.0
Lummis also noted that the Fed’s Section 9(13) policy, which labels Bitcoin and digital assets as “unsafe and unsound,” remains in place.
She further stated that many officials linked to “Operation Chokepoint 2.0” still have influence over current crypto-related decisions.
Industry reactions
Lummis posted:
We are NOT fooled. The Fed assassinated companies within the industry and hurt American interests by stifling innovation and shuttering businesses.
Caitlin Long, founder and CEO of Custodia Bank, agreed with Lummis, while other industry leaders like Saylor and Fideum’s Anastasija Plotnikova welcomed the Fed’s decision as a step toward simplifying institutional adoption.
