Former CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo is the 'dark horse' candidate to become America's first 'cryptocurrency czar'. Trump hopes this position will oversee a $3 trillion cryptocurrency industry.
Chris Giancarlo is known as 'Crypto Dad' because during his two-year tenure at the CFTC, he paved the way for Bitcoin futures trading in the United States. He revealed in an interview that he has declined positions at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the SEC.
Chris Giancarlo stated, 'Trump has set out a series of very specific measures to make the United States the global capital of cryptocurrency.'
He said this includes 'establishing a Bitcoin strategic reserve, forming a cryptocurrency advisory committee to ensure people have the ability to self-custody wallets', 'in other areas, Trump talked about the capital gains exemption for domestic cryptocurrency earnings, ending the de-banking of cryptocurrencies (Choke Point 2.0), and also discussed new regulations and oversight passed by the CFTC and SEC, as well as stablecoin legislation.'
Chris Giancarlo is a member of Trump's transition team. He said that cryptocurrency will be an 'obvious priority' for the new administration. 'Candidate suggestions are often not very specific. But I believe Trump has a very clear outline of what he wants to do.' He pointed out:
In this election cycle, the contribution and attention of the cryptocurrency industry is quite evident and may play a decisive role in several upcoming contests.
The firepower left by contributors of the super PAC Fairshake, which supports cryptocurrency and is backed by institutions like Coinbase, may contribute to the next round and facilitate responsive policies.
Chris Giancarlo mentioned that there is a gap in regulation, especially in the spot market trading of Bitcoin and Ethereum. He expressed support for Senate Agriculture Committee Chair, Senator Debbie Stabenow's efforts to give the CFTC the authority to regulate the digital commodity market.
He said, 'The number of new products regulated by the CFTC has far exceeded that of any regulatory agency in the world, certainly more than the SEC.' 'The CFTC is a very capable and competent regulatory agency that can handle spot authorizations.'
Chris Giancarlo added that the SEC government has failed in regulating cryptocurrencies, and Chair Gensler should 'follow our precedent', referring to the CFTC's proactive involvement in the cryptocurrency industry during his tenure.
Chris Giancarlo took over leadership of the CFTC from Gary Gensler in 2018 and stated that he had to 'clean up' the mess left by his predecessor.
Gary Gensler's unwillingness to engage with the cryptocurrency sector actually keeps it in a somewhat immature stage of development. Ending the crackdown will allow it to enter a more mature and useful development period.
Moreover, he also refuted Gary Gensler's claim that 'securities regulations should apply to cryptocurrency projects and companies', as this would cause regulators to miss the opportunity for 'tailored programs and policies for cryptocurrencies'. He said:
I repeatedly hear 'the same activities, the same regulations', but this really should not be the way the SEC operates.
He said that, for example, the regulations for municipal securities differ from those for corporate bonds, and the rules for private placements differ from those for public offerings. The SEC also has a long-standing tradition of developing regulatory rules by sector.
Furthermore, he believes that Gary Gensler has significantly lowered the SEC's position in the U.S. public and federal court system through 'excessive enforcement actions and lawsuits', which has greatly harmed the morale of SEC staff.
"The dark horse candidate for 'cryptocurrency czar'! Former CFTC Chairman: Cryptocurrency will be a 'priority of the Trump administration'" This article was first published on (Blockke).
