Overview

• The AFL-CIO’s Jody Calemine urged the Senate Banking Committee to reject the Responsible Financial Innovation Act, calling it a facade of regulation that weakens protections.
• The union says the draft would let FDIC‑insured banks hold and trade crypto directly, heightening failure risk and exposing the Deposit Insurance Fund.
• The letter warns the bill could enable 401(k)s and pensions to hold volatile crypto assets and would reduce safeguards by weakening federal and state enforcement tools.
• Provisions codifying tokenized securities are criticized as creating shadow markets outside SEC oversight, enabling issuers to evade disclosure and investor protections.
• Backers tout momentum toward a potential November floor vote requiring 60 Senate votes, while crypto industry figures dismiss the union’s concerns and some state regulators press for stronger guardrails.