According to a report from Bitcoinist on Monday, President-elect Trump plans to hold a private meeting with the CEO of the American crypto asset exchange Coinbase, Brian Armstrong. Fortune magazine confirmed on Tuesday that the discussion took place over the phone, rather than the initially reported private meeting.
Unverified reports are circulating on social media claiming that another prominent figure in the field, Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse, had direct contact with Trump. However, a spokesperson for Ripple stated that the related reports are untrue.
According to sources familiar with the call between Trump and Armstrong, the crypto asset industry is primarily focused on the appointments of the leadership of two financial regulatory agencies: the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). There is uncertainty about whether the agency will immediately dismiss many cases that are not directly related to fraud, as Gensler is expected to leave by the end of this year. If legislation changes, some of the SEC's regulatory authority will be transferred to the commodities regulator.
According to Fortune magazine, potential candidates to lead the CFTC include current commissioner Summer Mersinger and Milbank attorney Josh Sterling, who frequently represents cases in the industry.