Jerry Brito, who helped found the nonprofit research and advocacy organization Coin Center, is stepping down at the end of the year.
Coin Center's Senior Policy Counsel Robin Weisman is also stepping down, Brito said in a post on Monday. Both will remain on the organization's board of directors and will advise the team in the future, Brito said.
"I’ll leave my role at Coin Center very proud of what we’ve accomplished over the last ten years," Brito said. "When we started in 2014, it was not clear that governments would allow Bitcoin to flourish. Bitcoin and crypto are technically unstoppable, yes, but in the short term there was a lot of harm that could have been done and that many tried to do."
Peter Van Valkenburgh, research director, will take Brito's post as executive director on Jan. 1, 2025, according to the post. Policy Counsel Landon Zinda will become policy director. Operations Director Antonie Hodge and Communications Director Neeraj Agrawal will also have broadened roles in fundraising and management, Brito said.
Coin Center has taken on several issues in Washington. The organization has been in a legal fight with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service since 2022 over a crypto-tax reporting requirement that would mean individuals and businesses receiving $10,0000 or more in crypto would have to report to the government personal information.
The organization also previously sued the U.S. Treasury Department over its sanctioning of transaction mixer Tornado Cash. Coin Center said the Treasury “exceeded their statutory authority because Tornado Cash is used to complete functions that do not include 'any property in which any foreign country or a national thereof has any interest."
Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.
© 2024 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.