Senators Cynthia Lummis and Ron Wyden have introduced the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act. This legislation exempts developers and providers of non-custodial services from needing to obtain money transmitter licenses.
Writing code is not the same as controlling money, and developers who build blockchain infrastructure without touching user funds shouldn't be treated like banks. @RonWyden and I are ensuring that won’t happen. pic.twitter.com/9zIgh07e0b
— Senator Cynthia Lummis (@SenLummis) January 12, 2026
The initiative states that software creators who do not control user funds should not be subject to the same regulations as financial intermediaries.
“Forcing code developers to comply with the same rules as exchanges or brokers is technologically illiterate. This is a direct path to violating Americans' rights to privacy and free speech,” said Wyden.
The Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act is expected to be included in a comprehensive reform package for the cryptocurrency market being prepared by the Senate Banking Committee. Hearings on amendments and voting are scheduled for January 15.
Industry Position
The DeFi Education Fund has voiced support for the initiative, emphasizing that protecting software creators is crucial for the future of the financial system.
The Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (BRCA) provides critical protections for software developers of non-custodial, decentralized technologies — ensuring they will not be inaccurately and unfairly treated as “money transmitters” under the BSA and criminal law. The BRCA, which… https://t.co/1mWypyAlR8
— DeFi Education Fund (@fund_defi) January 12, 2026
On January 9, the non-profit Solana Policy Institute sent a letter to the SEC. Experts urged the Commission to clearly distinguish between centralized exchanges and non-custodial DeFi protocols.
The initiative's authors argue that applying the definition of “exchange” to open-source code is inappropriate. Smart contract developers do not hold client assets, execute trades, or manage funds.
The Solana Policy Institute believes that equating DeFi with trading platforms will stifle innovation and drive business offshore.
Precedents
The issue of programmer liability has intensified following the prosecution of the Tornado Cash mixer team. Authorities in the US and the Netherlands are pursuing legal action against developers Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev. The central question is whether writing and publishing open code can be considered complicity in a crime if the authors did not have access to user funds.
In January, Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin published a letter supporting Storm, who faces up to five years in prison. A staunch advocate for privacy, he has backed the mixer developer's project from the beginning.
Another notable precedent involved the founders of Samourai Wallet. In November 2025, a court convicted them of laundering over $237 million. Keonn Rodriguez received a five-year prison sentence, while his colleague William Lonergan Hill was sentenced to four years.
In December, US President Donald Trump indicated the possibility of pardoning Rodriguez. In January, the developer's wife, Lauren Emily, confirmed on X that the family continues to seek a review of the decision.
This is an old video. We are still seeking a pardon! Please sign the petition to let @POTUS know you care about bitcoin developers' freedom! https://t.co/x7szheKftE
— lauren emily (@leamuirleyn) January 13, 2026
She urged the community to sign the petition to demonstrate the importance of freedom for bitcoin developers.
It is worth noting that in August 2025, Matthew Galeotti from the US Department of Justice stated that the department would cease prosecuting DeFi application developers under the unlicensed money transmission statute.