U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris has spoken publicly about cryptocurrencies for the first time, pledging support for the industry while emphasizing consumer protection, Cointelegraph reported.
Harris made her first public statement on cryptocurrencies during her U.S. presidential campaign at a Wall Street fundraiser, saying she would encourage investment in artificial intelligence and digital assets.
“We’re going to work together to invest in American competitiveness, to invest in America’s future. We’re going to encourage innovative technologies like artificial intelligence and digital assets, while protecting our consumers and our investors,” Harris said at a fundraiser in Manhattan, Bloomberg reported on September 22.
"We will create a safe business environment with consistent and transparent rules," Harris said. "We will invest in semiconductors, clean energy, and other industries of the future, and cut unnecessary bureaucracy."
This is the first time Harris has spoken publicly about cryptocurrencies since becoming the Democratic presidential candidate. Her Republican opponent, Donald Trump, has also been working to win support from the crypto industry.
There has been speculation in the industry about whether Harris will adopt a different cryptocurrency policy than President Joe Biden, who is seen by some as unfriendly to the industry.
In August, Harris’ senior campaign adviser Brian Nelson hinted that she would support crypto policies if she wins the presidential election in November. However, she noted that the industry needs “rules” because some companies have gone out of business.
“This is an important and constructive statement,” Coinbase head of policy Faryal Shirzad said in a Sept. 22 X post.
“This is not as forward-thinking as the specific and visionary positions taken by Donald Trump, but it is still noteworthy because she recognizes the importance of innovation in digital assets and puts it on par with artificial intelligence,” Shirzad added.
Alexander Grieve, vice president of government affairs at venture capital firm Paradigm, called Harris’ comments “inspiring” on X and said that whoever wins in November, “this should be the last anti-crypto administration.”
“This is progress, and progress is good,” Jack Cherwinsky, legal director at crypto venture capital firm Variant, wrote in X. “But ‘protecting our consumers and investors at the same time’ can mean a lot of things.”
“Anti-crypto forces are using ‘consumer protection’ as a cover to hide their attempts to destroy our industry,” he claimed. “For my part, I want to see policy details.”
Cryptocurrency has become a campaign issue. U.S. crypto companies, including Coinbase, Ripple and Gemini, have spent nearly $120 million to influence the November election, Public Citizen reported in August.
Trump has released four non-fungible token series to support his family’s crypto platform and closely embrace the crypto industry.
He has pledged to become a “crypto president” and to fire SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, who has launched multiple enforcement actions against the country’s most prominent crypto players.
According to data from FiveThirtyEight on September 22, Harris and Trump are neck and neck in national polls, with Harris leading Trump by just 2.9 percentage points.
