Blockchain proponents argue that being anti-crypto is akin to being anti-internet in the 1990s, meaning against technology that will disrupt the world regardless of whether politicians support it.
In the 2024 United States presidential election, being hostile to the blockchain industry is becoming increasingly expensive in terms of voting, according to Perianne Boring, founder and CEO of advocacy group The Digital Chamber.
“I think most people have really underestimated how important cryptocurrency is to so many voters around the country,” noted Boring during a webinar hosted by asset management firm Hashdex on Oct. 30. She explained:
“25% of Democrats said that if a candidate takes a positive position on cryptocurrency, they would be more likely to vote for them. And 21% of Republicans said if a candidate takes a positive stance on crypto, they’re going to be much more likely to vote for them.”
According to Boring, only 2% of Democrats said if a candidate takes a pro-crypto position they would be much less likely to vote for them, while 3% of Republicans said the same.
“You can pick up anywhere between 21% to 25%, according to our poll, and you may lose maybe 2% or 3%. So this is a very risk-adjusted position for candidates to take to be pro-crypto,” she said.
The composition of Congress will be much more decisive for the industry than whoever sits in the White House. For Samir Kerbage, chief information officer at Hashdex, the next term in Washington will be more bullish for digital assets than the past cycle, but regulation will not happen overnight. He explained:
“We expect to see the next four years way more positive on the policy side than the last four years. [...] and even if Trump is elected and we get like a Republican sweep in Congress, that’s going to take a few months, maybe some years until this actually becomes like new regulations and full clarity to the industry.”
However, regulatory agencies in the country could expedite the process of clarity that encourages business development.
According to Boring, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) enforcement approach to crypto firms has drawn several companies away from the US in recent years.
“I’ve traveled internationally quite a bit to the UAE and all throughout Asia, and so many people that I’ve met have just said we’re just closing our doors to the United States. We want to follow the law, but we don’t know what it is,” she said.
She said clarifying when a digital asset should be regulated by the SEC versus the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) would address 70% of the issues among companies. “A lot of relief could actually be done very quickly on day one with the right people in place,” she stated.