T here would be a great irony if cryptocurrency — which was created in 2008 to provide an alternative to the mainstream financial system that had just failed — led to another economic crash. But that is what a handful of experts fear could happen now that Congress has passed the GENIUS Act, a major piece of crypto legislation.

Congress delivered a watershed victory for the crypto industry on Thursday, passing the first federal legislation to regulate stablecoins and clearing the way for broader use of the technology in everyday finance.

After a week of squabbling in Washington, the cryptocurrency industry secured one of its primary legislative objectives and made progress toward a second one.