Why Coinbase CEO Sees Trump’s Win as the ‘Dawn of a New Crypto Era’
Main points
- The cryptocurrency industry has made a big bet on the election of Donald Trump, with crypto assets having risen since he secured a second term in the White House.
- During the 2024 election cycle, the industry spent hundreds of millions of dollars on advertising and donations to pro-cryptocurrency candidates and groups.
- Crypto companies will likely look to Congress to pass crypto legislation, as well as new leadership and a friendlier stance from the SEC.
Cryptocurrency assets have soared in the week since Donald Trump was re-elected as president as the industry look forward To what Coinbase (coin) CEO Brian Armstrong on Tuesday called “the dawn of a new crypto era.”
The industry pours hundreds of millions of dollars in donations to candidates and ads during election cycles, according to reports and data from nonprofit watchdogs Public Citizen and OpenSecrets.
Bitcoin (Bitcoin USD) surged more than 25% since Election Day, hitting a series record high Exceed last week. Here’s what the industry can expect from Trump in his second term.
SEC Reorganization
Crypto Industry Hopes Trump Will Deliver on His Promises promise replace Gary Gensler as group leader Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Genslerzen Criticized by Cryptocurrency Executives for the agency to review the industry. Cryptocurrency advocates accuse SEC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)Another federal regulator, enforcement of federal laws is inconsistent and punitive.
Gensler’s term is set to last until 2026, and experts are divided over whether Trump can legally fire him, but it’s also possible Gensler followed the previous chairman’s lead and resigned during a change of administration.
New encryption legislation
armstrong told CNBC On Tuesday, it was revealed that the Congress that will be sworn in in January should be the “most pro-cryptocurrency Congress ever,” which could bring “some regulatory clarity” to the industry.
As of Tuesday, more than a dozen races were pending, and neither party had a majority in the House. Majorities in the Senate and White House could allow Republicans to pass legislation that would benefit the cryptocurrency industry, even without control of the House of Representatives.
The House of Representatives passed the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (FIT 21) in May with strong bipartisan support. The Senate has not yet taken up the bill due to opposition from Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and others concerned about anti-money laundering provisions.
Brown lost his reelection bid last week after crypto super PAC Defend American Jobs spent more than $40 million to support his opponent, Republican Bernie Moreno, OpenSecrets reported. Brown’s defeat was one of several defeats for Republicans in their bid to secure a 53-seat Senate majority in January.
A friendlier regulatory environment
Robin Hood (hood) CEO Vlad Tenev told CNBC On Tuesday, he argued that the SEC’s policy “Law enforcement and supervisionUnder Gensler’s leadership, the crypto industry “driven a lot of really interesting innovation” overseas, and that may change under the new SEC leadership. He said that the Trump administration may develop “more forward-looking policies” for the encryption industry.
Armstrong also said that new legislative and regulatory approaches could support the creation of new cryptocurrencies and open up new uses for them. He said companies could issue coins to raise funds, just like issuing stocks or bonds. He predicted that cryptocurrencies “will be the next version of the stock market.”
Coinbase on Tuesday launched the Coinbase 50 Index, which will track the prices of the 50 most valuable cryptocurrencies on Coinbase, similar to traditional stock market index Just like the S&P 500. At launch, the index’s weighting was focused on the two largest cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin and Ethereum (Ethereum USD) and are rebalanced every quarter.