The time for clear financial privacy rules is now
The U.S. urgently needs clear, unified financial privacy rules to reduce regulatory uncertainty and foster innovation.Summary
Despite recent progress in regulatory coordination between agencies like the SEC and CFTC, significant uncertainty persists regarding financial privacy rules in the U.S., which currently lack a single regulator and are governed inconsistently by the Treasury, DOJ, and SEC. This divergence is exemplified by conflicting stances on non-custodial crypto services, such as the DOJ's action against Tornado Cash following Treasury's earlier guidance. The existing sweeping financial surveillance regime, rooted in the Bank Secrecy Act, is criticized as a government panopticon that stifles economic and social activity by forcing a choice between full disclosure or non-participation (privacy deadweight loss). The author argues that modern technology, like zero-knowledge proofs, allows for compliance without revealing underlying data, making it possible to establish clear digital-era privacy frameworks. Software developers and market participants require definitive legal requirements, as regulatory uncertainty prevents market participation just as much as incorrect rules do.
(Source：CoinDesk)