US House bill pushes for central registry of off-chain crypto trades

The bill, being floated as a “common-sense” approach, aims to “restore” transparency and “confidence” to the digital asset market, according to Rep. Beyer

article-image

Phil Pasquini / Shutterstock, modified by Blockworks

share

Legislation, introduced to the House by Rep. Don Beyer D-VA. on Thursday, aims to bolster transparency around digital asset transfers that are not recorded on a public blockchain.

The Off-Chain Digital Commodity Transaction Reporting Act, being touted as a consumer protection bill, would require digital asset trading platforms to record transfers in a repository registered with the CFTC. 

Amendments are being sought within “the Commodity Exchange Act with respect to reporting digital commodity transactions.” Transactions would need to be reported within a 24-hour period after they’re executed, a copy of the bill’s text reads.

Off-chain transactions can encompass a variety of activities, including private peer-to-peer transfers and the movement of funds between different accounts on a centralized exchange.

“As consumers increasingly turn to large digital asset trading platforms to conduct their business, thousands of transactions each day are conducted off the publicly verifiable blockchain,” Beyer said in a statement. 

“Unfortunately, internal record keeping among these private entities can vary wildly and this can leave investors and consumers vulnerable to fraud and manipulation.”

Following the collapse of FTX and other centralized entities, criticism by industry proponents has been levied at the way in which digital assets are recorded and transparently communicated to the public.

In response, major exchanges including OKX, Binance and Crypto.com, among others, have attempted to assuage customers using a “proof-of-reserves” model, soliciting third-party accounting firms to bolster credibility and legitimacy.

This model seeks to provide a verification mechanism to ensure that customer-held assets align with the reserves the institution maintains on its client’s behalf. 

Legislation Thursday could potentially add an additional layer of transparency surrounding the health of a given institution.

“Many platforms maintain internal private ledgers that track transactions, but these records can be of varying quality. Discrepancies can lead to disputes, manipulation, or fraud,” per the statement.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Research Report Templates.jpg

Research

Figure, founded by former SoFi CEO Mike Cagney, has emerged as a leader in onchain RWAs, with ~$17.5B publicly tokenized. The platform’s ecosystem volume is growing ~40% YoY as it expands beyond HELOCs into student loans, DSCR loans, unsecured loans, bankruptcy claims, and more. Operationally, Figure cuts average loan production cost by ~93% and compresses median funding time from ~42 days to ~10, creating a durable speed-and-cost advantage.

article-image

Former White House crypto official Bo Hines is expected to be the CEO of the new project

article-image

In bonds, stablecoins and billionaires, a reminder of what makes crypto special

article-image

21Shares exec says CPI and PPI data supports a Fed rate cut, with market leaning toward a 25bps decrease

article-image

The Ethereum co-founder suggested LINEA holders would be eligible for other airdrops in cryptic tweet

article-image

The layer-2’s biggest release yet brings benefits — but a post-upgrade outage caused a chain reorg

article-image

Crypto is shifting into risk-on mode — pump.fun dominates meme activity, while Lido leans on treasury maneuvers