Wyoming’s state stablecoin: Another brick in the wall?
For a state with a small-town feel, Wyoming moves with big-city alacrity when it comes to things crypto. According to the bipartisan bill introduced into its legislature last week, a Wyoming stablecoin could debut before the end of 2022. The announcement caught even Wyoming banker and cryptocurrency champion Caitlin Long by surprise.
“Didn't know it was coming,” tweeted the Avanti Bank CEO.
It also raises some questions: Is a stablecoin really needed by Wyoming’s citizens? Is it feasible? Will it upset the state’s commercial banks including its recently chartered special purpose depository institutions (SPDIs) like Avanti which has issued a stablecoin-like product itself?
Moreover, is a state-issued stablecoin even constitutional? And, aren’t there enough stablecoins around already? Then again, maybe Wyoming is out ahead of the crypto pack again — at least in the United States — and other cities and states will soon jump on the stablecoin bandwagon?
“Given that regulators are still scrambling” to understand and deal with crypto, “anything a state like Wyoming does that is a new data point is going to have an impact.” Rohan Grey, assistant professor at Willamette University College of Law, told Cointelegraph. It would be “treated as part of the landscape,” something to which U.S. regulators and even Congress would have to respond, he said.
Senate Minority Leader Chris Rothfuss, one of the Wyoming Stable Token Act’s four sponsors, told Cointelegraph that many people in Wyoming, as well as beyond, are still reluctant to use stablecoins “because they don’t have confidence in the assets” that stand behind them. Will the token really be redeemable for United States dollars upon demand?
“It’s still a question-mark” in the minds of
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