Blue-chip crypto firms are reportedly scrambling to obtain a spot on President-elect Donald Trump’s promised advisory board.
According to a new report by Reuters, US crypto industry giants – including payments firm Ripple Labs, crypto exchange Kraken, stablecoin issuer Circle, and venture capitalist firm Andreessen Horowitz – are all currently competing for spots on Trump’s crypto advisory council.
Several executives in the digital assets industry told Reuters that the firms are jostling for positions because they want a say in overhauling the nation’s crypto policies.
Trump initially announced his plans to create a crypto advisory board in July when he spoke at the Bitcoin (BTC) conference.
As stated by David Bailey, the chief executive of Bitcoin magazine who set up Trump’s appearance at the BTC conference, to Reuters,
“[The advisory board is] being fleshed out, but I anticipate the leading executives from America’s Bitcoin and crypto firms to be represented… People are eager to advise and give input.”
According to the report, two anonymous sources said that Trump’s transition team – which includes former Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Heath Tarbert, chief legal officer at Circle, and former Republican CFTC Commissioner Brian Quintenz, head of policy for Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto branch – is also discussing creating a “crypto czar” role.
As stated by Nathan McCauley, CEO of crypto software firm Anchorage Digital, who has advocated for a change from Joe Biden’s crypto policies, according to Reuters,
“It’s absolutely the wise choice to put together a council of people who… understand how both the industry ought to be regulated and how to situate the industry to be a strategic asset.”
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