Quick Breakdown
- US senators introduced the BRCA to protect non-custodial blockchain developers from money transmitter rules.
- The bill follows legal action against Tornado Cash developers, which alarmed the crypto community.
- Industry groups are pushing for the bill to remain part of broader crypto market structure reforms.
US Senators Cynthia Lummis and Ron Wyden have introduced new legislation aimed at protecting blockchain developers and infrastructure providers from being classified as money transmitters simply for writing code or maintaining decentralized networks.
Writing code is not the same as controlling money and developers who build blockchain infrastructure without touching user funds shouldn’t be treated like banks. @RonWyden and I are ensuring that won’t happen. pic.twitter.com/9zIgh07e0b
— Senator Cynthia Lummis (@SenLummis) January 12, 2026
The proposed Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (BRCA), unveiled on Monday, seeks to clarify that developers who do not directly control or handle user funds should not be subject to federal or state money transmission requirements. The move comes amid growing fears within the crypto industry that software developers could face criminal liability for how third parties use their tools.
Concerns intensified last year after Tornado Cash developers Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev were charged over allegations that the privacy protocol functioned as an unlicensed money-transmitting business.
Lummis said the bill would give developers the confidence to build in the US without fear of prosecution, arguing that current regulatory ambiguity has pushed innovation offshore and exposed developers to conflicting state laws.
Tied to the broader crypto market structure push
The BRCA mirrors protections included in a broader crypto market structure bill, which is expected to face a markup in the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday. However, lawmakers caution that draft provisions could still be amended, diluted, or removed before becoming law.
Some policymakers have warned that overly broad exemptions could weaken efforts to combat illicit finance, while supporters argue the proposal preserves existing anti-money-laundering authority without criminalizing software development.
Progress on the market structure bill has also slowed elsewhere. The Senate Agriculture Committee, which must also approve the legislation, has postponed its hearing until the final week of January, according to Chairman John Boozman.
Crypto industry rallies behind the bill
The BRCA has already received strong backing from crypto advocacy groups and industry leaders.
The DeFi Education Fund described the bill as offering “critical protections” for developers building non-custodial and decentralized technologies, urging lawmakers to ensure it remains part of broader market structure legislation.
The Blockchain Association echoed that view, saying clear regulatory rules are essential for innovation to remain in the US. Paradigm’s vice president of government affairs, Alexander Grieve, also called the bill “crucial” for supporting domestic blockchain development.
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