The debate lasted less than four minutes.
Legislators in the Florida House gave final approval to a bill that makes it easier to buy and sell cryptocurrencies, eliminating a threat from a law intended to curb money laundering. Two House members stood up to thank the industry for working with state officials to write a draft of the bill.
"This is a great bill, whether you're a Republican or Democrat, and it's applicable to all types of exchanges and coins."
The measure was unanimously passed by the House. The bill was sent to the governor after 75 seconds of deliberations.
Florida's warm embrace of the cryptocurrencies agenda is just the beginning of an aggressive industry push to position states asCrypto-friendly beachheads. Lobbyists and executives in the industry are helping to draft bills that will benefit the industry, then pushing for them to be adopted by the legislature.
The effort is part of an emerging national strategy by the industry to work state by state to create a friendlier legal system. Lobbyists are trying to clear the way for the continued growth of cryptocurrencies, which are trying to change banking, e- commerce and even art and music.
Many states are racing to get on the wish lists of the companies that want them to. Some consumer advocates worry that this aim-to-please effort could leave investors and businesses more vulnerable to the scam and risky practices that have plagued the early growth of cryptocurrencies.
In Florida, the new money-transmission legislation emerged from a monthslong collaboration between Representative Aloupis Jr., a Republican of South Miami, and Samuel Armes, who is starting acryptocurrencies investment firm.
Mr. Armes said that Vance has been an incredible asset to the community.
According to a New York Times review of state legislative proposals and interviews with legislators and their industry allies, similar teamwork has been on display in Wyoming, North Carolina, Illinois, Mississippi, Kentucky and other states.
The National Conference of State Legislatures found that at least 153 pieces of legislation related to cryptocurrencies were pending in 40 states and Puerto Rico. Some bills have used industry-proposed language almost word for word. A bill in Illinois lifted sentences from a draft provided by a lobbyist.
In New York, at least a dozen industry players have hired lobbyists over the last year, including Paxos, which is trying to set up a national coin bank.
The state wants to exempt cryptocurrencies from securities laws. Legislation in Florida would prevent certain cryptocurrencies from being included in money-transmission laws. In Arizona, a legislator wants to make it legal to pay off debts with legal tender of digital currency.
Legislators want to be on the cutting edge, on the side of something new.
Lee Reiners, a former supervisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York who is now at Duke University law school, is alarmed by the moves. He objected to the bill that exempts certain start-ups from the state's consumer protection laws.
He said that states are convinced that you have to do this if you want to be competitive.
State legislators, many of whom have limited background in financial regulation, said they had little choice but to rely on industry experts.
Two years ago, a state representative in North Carolina spoke with a man named Dan Spuller who wanted to pitch him on cryptocurrencies.
Mr. Saine asked what it would look like.
A bill was introduced last year by Mr. Saine that would allow the financial technology industry to test new products without following certain regulatory requirements. The bill was passed in October.
In Florida, it began with a book.
State legislators started working with the industry after reading a book about the efforts of the Winklevoss brothers.
Mr. Aloupis said he had spoken with the Winklevosses and the first federally-chartered speach bank about possible legislation he could introduce.
The Florida court ruling that upheld the conviction of Mitchell Espinoza, who was found guilty of running a Russian stolen-credit-card enterprise, was a source of frustration for the executives at the time. Mr. Espinoza failed to hold a Florida money-transmission license.
Any two-party transaction involving cryptocurrencies in Florida must have a state money-transmission license. Meeting financial stability requirements and completing complicated paperwork were required by the companies. They called it the Espinoza Problem.
The state ordered a dozen A.T.M. providers to register as money transmitters despite appeals from the companies, according to documents obtained by The Times.
The bill to exempt two-party transactions was introduced last year. Its members include a large exchange. The bill was reintroduced for this year's session after it failed to win Senate approval.
The commissioner of the Office of Financial Regulation in Florida said he endorsed the legislation that Mr. Armes had championed.
If I go to your store and buy groceries, do I need a license? It seems crazy.
Lobbyists for both Bit5ive and Blockchain.com joined the effort to contact state lawmakers.
Robert Collazo, the Bit5ive chief executive, said that Florida lawmakers are very pro.
Michael Kesti, Bit5ive's lobbyist, said that the company plans to raise money for legislators in Florida. Mr. Armes and others have given money to the legislative affairs director of the FloridaBlockchain association, who is running for the State House.
Mr. Kesti doesn't want it to appear that we are paying for influence.
The situation in Florida is playing out in other states as the industry mobilizes to move its agenda or defend against efforts to rein it in.
Legislation is pending in New York to ban centers that use large amounts of electricity to run computers that allow investors to get new coins. The bill proposes to crack down on common forms of fraud. Lobbyists in New York have been fighting these measures.
Legislators in Georgia and Illinois have proposed tax incentives for mining companies.
The Illinois bill came about after a company called Sangha Systems converted an old steel mill in the state into a mining center and sought a tax break to help finance the project.
There is a virtual currency called th digital currency called th digital currency is called th digital currency is called th digital currency is called th digital currency is called th digital currency is called th digital currency is called th digital currency is called th digital currency is There is a digital token that can be sent anywhere in the world. This form of digital currency is stored and moved on a payment network.
There is a system for storing data called the Blockchain. A database maintained communally and that reliably stores digital information can be found on a blockchain. Non-currency-based companies and governments are trying to use the same technology that was used to store all of the Bitcoins.
It is possible to pay with corp coin. The first major company to list its shares on a U.S. stock exchange is Coinbase, a platform that allows people and companies to buy and sell various digital currencies.
Web3. The idea of a new kind of internet service that is built using a new kind of token is what some technologists call it.
They are called DAOs. A DAO is an organizational structure that is built with the use of the internet's technology. Investing in start-ups, managing a stable coin or buying NFTs are examples of the common purpose of a DAO.
An official from the state Chamber of Commerce was taken by a lobbyist to visit a project in Illinois. The chamber official suggested changing a state law to give tax incentives to mining companies that set up shop in Illinois. The chamber shared a draft of the bill with Sangha.
Spencer Marr, Sangha's president, said that he looked at it and iterated with them.
Sue Rezin, a Republican state senator, said in an interview that she introduced the bill at the urging of the chamber. She said she wasn't a expert on mining's environmental impact.
The final version of the bill is almost identical to the draft written by Mr. Staats.
Some legislative proposals have not come to fruition. Josh Harkins, a Republican state senator in Mississippi, has proposed several cryptocurrencies bills this year. He said he got the idea from Daniel Harrison, a lobbyist.
In February, the bills died in committee. Mr. Harkins said he would revive them this summer.
The architects of the proposals moved quickly to profit from the laws in some states.
Kentucky passed a pair of bills last year. Brandon Smith is a Republican who leads the State Senate's Natural Resources and Energy Committee.
A few months after the bill passed, Mr. Smith and Bitmain proposed a Kentucky-based repair center for mining equipment. Mr. Smith said in an interview that he did not consider his work in the industry a conflict because he had not applied for the tax credits his law created.
Wyoming has the potential to profit from new legislation.
Wyoming has more than 20 laws that make it easier for the industry to operate. The law that paved the way for banks to handle digital assets in Wyoming was the work of a Wall Street veteran named Caitlin Long.
After the legislation passed, Ms. Long opened a bank. The bank was given a state charter.
The business raised $37 million from venture investors last year.
Ms. Long worked on the legislation with an investor. Both of them invested in the exchange that received a state charter.
Critics have accused Ms. Long of using her influence to enrich herself.
They came in and started writing legislation that was really gamed to their advantage.
Ms. Long said she didn't start her bank until months after Wyoming's legislation passed because she didn't know if others would take advantage of it.
She said it was not easy to find the right people.
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