Ex-US defense secretary calls CLARITY Act a ‘national security bill’

A former US defense secretary has urged the Senate to pass the CLARITY Act, arguing that weak digital asset rules create openings for North Korea and China to undermine American financial power. In an op-ed in the Financial Times on Saturday, former US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said Beijing is already investing in state-directed payment systems to sidestep American supervision and erode the US dollar’s central role. “I have long argued that China is the greatest strategic threat of our lifetime,” said Esper, who also serves as a member of the Coinbase Global Advisory Council. He also said the act would give the US better tools to cut off crypto-specific loopholes that can be used by North Korean actors such as the Lazarus Group to avoid US financial controls.“The Act also extends the Treasury’s potent special-measures authority under section 311 of the USA Patriot Act — one of our sharpest weapons against rogue actors,” he said. The Senate is expected to vote on the CLARITY Act on Sept. 15. On Saturday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed cloture to bring the CLARITY Act to the Senate floor for consideration.“This is why the Clarity Act, now before the Senate, is not mere...