A group of technology experts is calling upon officials in Washington to crack down on what they believe to be misleading lobbying from the crypto industry.
According to a report from The Financial Times, 26 leading computer scientists and academics have signed and delivered a letter to US officials in the capital criticizing cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.
The group, which includes Harvard lecturer Bruce Schneier, Microsoft engineer Miguel de Icaza and Google Cloud’s principal engineer Kelsey Hightower, aims to “counter-lobby” against the growing crypto and blockchain lobbying groups.
Says Schneier,
“The claims that the blockchain advocates make are not true. It’s not secure, it’s not decentralized. Any system where you forget your password and you lose your life savings is not a safe system.”
In the letter seen by FT, the authors ask officials to think twice before yielding to crypto lobbyists.
“We urge you to resist pressure from digital asset industry financiers, lobbyists and boosters to create a regulatory safe haven for these risky, flawed and unproven digital financial instruments…
Crypto-assets have been the vehicle for unsound and highly volatile speculative investment schemes that are being actively promoted to retail investors who may be unable to understand their nature and risk.”
According to Microsoft’s de Icaza, the computational power behind blockchain is the equivalent of what one could do in a centralized way with a $100 computer.
“We’re essentially wasting millions of dollars worth of equipment because we’ve decided that we don’t trust the banking system.”
Crypto lobbying efforts in Washington have increased in recent years, getting the attention of officials from both parties. Earlier this year, SkyBridge Capital CEO Anthony Scarramuci predicted that lobbying groups would force the next two presidential candidates of 2024 to be pro-crypto.
“Let me just say this to you, follow the money because there is a water-wall of money entering Washington from the different associations and lobbying groups. I’ll make a prediction on your show that the 2024 final two presidential candidates will be pro-crypto, pro-blockchain. Follow the money.”
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