On Sunday, Democratic nominee Kamala Harris made her first public mention of crypto during her presidential campaign, telling donors at a Wall Street fundraiser that she would “encourage innovative technologies like AI and digital assets while protecting our consumers and investors.”
The comments further divided a polarized crypto industry, which has poured more than $200 million into both Republican and Democratic nominees during the campaign cycle but has criticized Harris’s predecessor, President Biden, for his administration’s heavy-handed approach to blockchain regulation.
While Harris has yet to share any substantial policy regarding crypto, including her stance on the litany of bills languishing in Congress, industry leaders such as Uniswap’s Hayden Adams viewed Sunday’s remarks as a positive step forward for the Democratic party.
“Yes Biden has been bad for crypto,” Adams posted on X. “But progress is progress, it needs to start somewhere, and should be encouraged.”
Commenters quickly noted that Uniswap is the subject of an investigation—and potential civil charges—by Biden’s Securities and Exchange Commission.
🦄 Kamala just said she will encourage innovative technologies like DIGITAL ASSETS
— Hayden Adams 🦄 (@haydenzadams) September 22, 2024
I believe this is her first time referencing crypto publicly and it’s in a positive way https://t.co/NLdDcYZira
Turning the page
Before the collapse of FTX in November 2022, Congress appeared close to considering bipartisan bills on different crypto issues, including establishing supervision for stablecoins and digital asset market structure. But the loss of billions in customer assets—and Sam Bankman-Fried’s embarrassing role as a top donor—halted any legislative process and triggered an onslaught of enforcement actions from regulators including the SEC and Department of Justice.
While a handful of Democratic congresspeople have continued to push for crypto regulation, the majority of support has come from Republicans, pushing much of the industry to support Donald Trump’s bid for the presidency. After describing Bitcoin as a “scam” just two years ago, Trump has also embraced the blockchain sector, announcing a new DeFi project run by his sons and even visiting a New York Bitcoin bar ahead of a Long Island campaign stop last weekend.
The Harris administration has stayed mostly quiet on its stance toward blockchain regulation, bringing advisors on board who have represented both sides of the debate. And while a group called Crypto For Harris has emerged run by digital asset industry leaders to fundraise for the Democratic nominee, Harris did not make any explicit mentions of blockchain technology until Sunday.
The vague comments drew a divided reaction. Democratic-leaning industry leaders, such as Paradigm policy director Justin Slaughter, hailed Harris’s remarks as “progress” on X. But as Variant’s chief legal officer Jake Chervisnky noted, her call for “consumer protection” could also be interpreted as further enforcement actions.
