Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party’s presidential frontrunner, has made her first public statement regarding cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence during a Wall Street fundraiser in Manhattan. Harris vowed to encourage investment in innovative technologies like AI and digital assets while also ensuring consumer and investor protection.
Harris emphasized the importance of creating a safe business environment with consistent and transparent rules of the road. She also highlighted the need to invest in industries of the future such as semiconductors and clean energy, while cutting unnecessary bureaucracy.
This statement from Harris comes at a crucial time for the crypto industry, as many have been waiting to see if she would diverge from President Joe Biden’s approach, which some view as unfriendly to the sector. Harris’s senior campaign adviser, Brian Nelson, hinted that she would support crypto policies if she wins the November election, but stressed the importance of having clear rules in place to prevent company collapses.
Industry experts have reacted positively to Harris’s remarks, with Coinbase policy chief Faryar Shirzad calling it an important and constructive statement. However, some have noted that Harris’s stance is not as forward-leaning as Donald Trump’s, who has actively courted the crypto industry.
Alexander Grieve, the government affairs vice president at venture firm Paradigm, described Harris’s remarks as encouraging and expressed hope that regardless of the election outcome, this would be the last anti-crypto administration. Similarly, Jake Chervinsky, legal chief at crypto venture firm Variant, acknowledged the progress but called for more policy details to ensure consumer protection is not used as a pretext to hinder the industry.
The upcoming US elections have put a spotlight on the crypto industry, with companies like Coinbase, Ripple, and Gemini spending millions to influence the outcome. Trump, Harris’s Republican rival, has positioned himself as a “crypto president” and has shown strong support for the industry, including launching non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and backing his family’s crypto platform.
As Harris and Trump remain neck-and-neck in national polls, the stance on crypto could play a significant role in shaping the future of the industry. With Harris breaking her silence on the issue, it remains to be seen how her policies will impact the crypto landscape in the coming years.