Lawmakers Call Two Industry Groups for Hearing, One Including Domestic Crypto Players.

The Brazilian Senate will hold a public hearing on cryptocurrency regulation after a lawmaker launched a new effort to “update” the country’s laws.

According to the official news agency of the Brazilian Senate (via Vamos Adiante), the hearing will be chaired by the Brazilian Senate’s Economic Committee.

Brazilian Senate Wants to Hear from Regulators, Crypto Industry
The hearing comes after Senator Soraya Thronicke of the Podemos Party introduced a private member’s bill that would oversee how virtual asset service providers (VASPs) issue coins, hold tokens, and process payments.

Senator Rogerio Carvalho responded by calling for a public hearing, and the committee accepted his request on Wednesday, March 19.

Carvalho is the leader of the Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT) party in the Senate. The PT is part of the ruling coalition that supports President Lula.

The PT leader said lawmakers need to consult with “experts and representatives of the public and private sectors” before enacting the law.

Carvalho said the rapid and “accelerating” growth of the “domestic virtual asset market” meant a public hearing was necessary.

Senator Calls for ‘Technical Analysis’
The senator said lawmakers need to conduct an “in-depth, technical analysis of the implications” of the Thronicke bill.

This would help “ensure legal security and transparency, as well as protect customers and investors,” he said.

Carvalho added that cryptocurrencies are starting to play an increasingly important role in the “digital economy.”

The Senate said it has not yet set a date for the hearing. But it said that “representatives from four organizations” will “be invited to participate.”

These include two regulators, namely the Central Bank of Brazil (BCB) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM).

The Senate’s press release also named two industry groups that could attend: the Brazilian Crypto-Economic Association (ABCripto) and the Brazilian Association of Financial and Capital Markets (Anbima).

‘It’s Time to Strengthen Crypto Regulation in Brazil’
Thronicke is one of the Brazilian Senate’s strongest advocates for regulating cryptocurrencies.

In August 2020, she introduced a bill that would give the BCB and CVM oversight of Brazil’s cryptocurrency market.

She has pushed further to introduce cryptocurrency regulation in 2022 and 2024. Her latest bill proposes requiring all cryptocurrency exchanges and brokerages operating in Brazil to obtain a license to operate.

The law also applies to foreign-based exchanges that offer services to Brazilian residents.

Thronicke claims her bill will “bring greater transparency and security to the cryptocurrency sector.”

It would also require exchanges to separate their coins and fiat from their customers’ funds.

Cryptocurrency adoption is on the rise in Brazil, where a recent study by Bitso found a 6% increase in the number of crypto customers.