New Hampshire gov releases report on blockchain following executive order

Chris Sununu, the governor of New Hampshire, has released the results of an investigation from a ​​commission aimed at recommending legislation around digital assets and blockchain as part of a 2022 executive order.

In a Jan. 19 announcement, Sununu said the Commission on Cryptocurrencies and Digital Assets had reported the legal and regulatory status of cryptocurrencies and digital assets was “highly uncertain,” stymying development and leading to less protection for investors and consumers. The group recommended New Hampshire establish a state legal regime aimed at drawing in blockchain firms and individuals.

According to the report, sent to the governor on Dec. 22, the commission considered the human factor in its recommendations, alluding to the collapse of FTX and the arrest of its former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried — i.e. "criminal fraud resulting in the loss of billions of dollars of customer assets”. Specifically, it recommended establishing legal status for decentralized autonomous organizations, or DAOs, putting funds into the state’s court system for resolving disputes involving blockchain issues, and encouraging the government’s banking department to provide “clear, public and proactive guidance” on how financial institutions may handle digital assets.

“New Hampshire should take strong pro-active and public steps to build a better legal infrastructure for sound development of Blockchain technologies and its applications,” said the report.

The group concluded with the following:

“The Commission expects that Blockchain technologies will continue to evolve and develop, and become more integrated into our society and economy [...] this next phase of development should be accomplished not only through innovations in computer software protocols, but also should be accompanied by improvements in the legal infrastructure that necessarily operates in parallel with these activities.”

Related: Tennessee lawmaker introduces bill which would allow state to invest in crypto

Sununu referred to the report as “comprehensive and timely”. Other U.S. state governors have pushed efforts to establish regulatory clarity for crypto and blockchain, including California, while New York Governor Kathy Hochul stood behind a proposal to ban crypto mining operations not based on 100% renewable energy.