By David Baum
Two years ago, on the heels of the FTX implosion, pundits and prognosticators shouted the era of crypto was “over.”
For those of us who have worked to help scale blockchain adoption for the past decade, we understood that like other nascent industries, shedding the first movers was not necessarily a setback. It was instead a temporary tide that would eventually unleash the next wave of innovation and growth.
That tide returned in full force in November, with crypto being a clear winner on election night. According to Stand with Crypto, 273 pro-crypto candidates from both major parties won their House seats, with 19 pro-crypto candidates securing wins in the Senate.
The next Congress and White House will be the most pro-crypto in history and come on the heels of major legislative milestones.
Earlier this year, Democrats and Republicans in the House in a sweeping bipartisan vote passed the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, (FIT21). The bill, if passed by the Senate, would finally establish a federal digital asset regulatory framework by clarifying the regulatory responsibilities of the SEC and CFTC. This is something the industry has advocated for years, as certainty fosters investment and growth.
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has been an outspoken critic and roadblock for the industry. With his tenure likely ending, the odds of a more pro-digital assets chairman is a strong possibility. Factor in the successful launch this year of Bitcoin ETFs, powered by traditional financial institutions, and continued easing from the Fed, and it is not hyperbolic to say we are on the verge of a sustained era of crypto growth.
America is at its best when innovating, and the likelihood of establishing clear federal regulatory guardrails (at long last) will remove uncertainty, set the speed limits and usher in an exciting era of ingenuity. The U.S. economy has been the driving force of technological innovation for more than a century, and removing the albatross of regulatory purgatory is the match that sparks the fire the crypto community has long waited for.
For me and my teammates who have had a front-row seat on this rollercoaster, it is an exhilarating moment. It’s not the time to say, “I told you so,” but rather, a time to ensure responsible and ethical leaders take the reins and work together, continuing to change the narrative of our industry.
David Baum, Managing Director, Corporate Affairs, leads the agency’s global digital infrastructure team.
