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Trump has promised crypto-friendly administration

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Council likely to be housed within White House, source

says

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Will likely coordinate policy, set up bitcoin reserve

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Industry wants end to Biden enforcement actions

By Hannah Lang

Nov 21 (Reuters) - A slew of crypto companies including

Ripple, Kraken and Circle are jostling for a seat on

President-elect Donald Trump's promised crypto advisory council,

seeking a say in his planned overhaul of U.S. policy, according

to several digital asset industry executives.

Campaigning at a July bitcoin conference in Nashville, Trump

promised a new council as part of a crypto-friendly

administration. His transition team is discussing how to

structure and staff it, and which companies should be included,

the people said.

Several top U.S. crypto companies are clamoring for seats at

the table. Among them are venture firm Paradigm, said one

source, while venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz's crypto

arm a16z is also expected to grab a spot.

"It's being fleshed out, but I anticipate the leading

executives from America's bitcoin and crypto firms to be

represented," said David Bailey, CEO of Bitcoin Magazine who

arranged for Trump to speak at the July conference and has

spoken with the President-elect about bitcoin policy.

"People are eager to advise and give input," Bailey said.

A Kraken spokesperson declined to comment, while a

spokesperson for a16z did not respond to requests for comment.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong recently met with

Trump, said a source familiar with the matter, confirming a

Monday Wall Street Journal report. It was unclear what they

discussed. The source added that Coinbase, the largest U.S.

crypto exchange, was also interested in being on the council.

Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire told the New York Times this month

he wants to be on the council, a company spokesperson noted.

The crypto council would likely be housed under the White

House's National Economic Council, which coordinates and

implements the President's economic policies, or a separate

White House apparatus, two of the people said.

It is expected to advise on digital asset policy, work with

Congress on crypto legislation, establish Trump's promised

bitcoin reserve and coordinate between agencies including the

Securities and Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading

Commission and the Treasury, they and other executives said. The

council may also include enforcement representatives and former

policymakers, one of the sources said.

Trump's transition team, which did not respond to a request

for comment, is also discussing creating a crypto "tsar" role,

two sources said. One added the tsar would likely lead the

council. Trump's team is vetting candidates for that role,

Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.

Former CFTC Chair Heath Tarbert, chief legal officer at

Circle, and former Republican CFTC commissioner Brian Quintenz,

head of policy for a16z crypto, have been advising the Trump

transition team on crypto policy, Reuters previously reported.

Excitement over a crypto-friendly Trump administration has

helped push bitcoin to record highs and closer to the

long-awaited $100,000 milestone.

Trump courted support and campaign donations from the

sector with promises to be a "crypto president" and end

President Joe Biden's crackdown on crypto companies that

regulators accused of flouting securities and anti-money

laundering laws.

The industry is pushing for executive orders guaranteeing

crypto companies' access to banking services, an end to

enforcement actions and other changes.

Some consumer groups have warned the crypto industry should

not be able to write its own rules, and some of the sources said

ethics considerations could slow personnel appointments. But

others said it makes sense for industry experts to have a say in

critical policy issues.

"It's absolutely the wise choice to put together a council

of people who... understand how both the industry ought to be

regulated and how to situate the industry to be a strategic

asset," said Nathan McCauley, CEO of crypto platform Anchorage

Digital, who has urged the Trump team to reverse Biden's stance

on crypto.

While presidential advisory councils are not a new concept,

there has never been one dedicated to cryptocurrencies, which

did not exist until bitcoin's launch in 2009. Biden has multiple

councils, including on Science and Technology which was

established via executive order in first month he took office.

Kristin Smith, chief executive of crypto trade group the

Blockchain Association said setting up the crypto council is

something Trump "could do very quickly."