WASHINGTON — Lawmakers are sharply divided over the government's approach to the growing popularity of digital currencies.
On one side are Democrats raising alarms about cryptocurrency price manipulation and the risk of digital currencies enabling criminal activity. Republicans have the completely opposite view that policymakers should get out of the way of innovation to allow the U.S. to compete globally.
"The last thing we should do is regulate these innovators into oblivion," said Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont.
But Democrats such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts echoed other lawmakers' concerns about pricing risk that she said could threaten the financial system.