Donald Trump’s victory in this presidential election could spur long-stalled crypto market structure legislation, according to Katherine Dowling, chief compliance officer at Bitwise Asset Management.
During a recent Q&A session, she discussed the potential impact of the upcoming election on cryptocurrency regulation, specifically highlighting the importance of the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century (FIT21) Act, a legislative proposal aimed at clarifying regulatory oversight of digital assets.
FIT21 seeks to address the ambiguity surrounding cryptocurrency regulation by defining clear roles for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The bill proposes clear definitions for different types of digital assets, identifying which agency should regulate each.
“This is incredibly important. And it has been missing in the crypto space for a while,” Dowling said.
GOP Leadership Could Settle the FIT21 Debate: Bitwise
Under a Republican administration, Dowling believes there will be a faster path to market structure legislation. She points to the ongoing debates between Rep. Patrick McHenry and Rep. Maxine Waters over FIT21, which have stalled the process due to partisan differences.
McHenry supports FIT21, arguing that regulatory clarity is essential for the United States to remain globally competitive in the fintech sector. Waters, on the other hand, has expressed concern about what she sees as insufficient consumer protections in the bill.
Cryptocurrency plays a major political role in the upcoming presidential election
Dowling noted that presidential elections are now more important than ever for the crypto industry as crypto has become a key issue for voters. “In the future, we hope that there will be no politics around crypto like there was in the early days of the internet,” she commented.
She drew parallels between the current state of cryptocurrency and the early days of the internet, where there were bipartisan debates over various aspects of the emerging technology. “Cryptocurrency is an innovation. It’s a technology and it shouldn’t be political, but in this election cycle, it has become political,” she added.
As the election approaches, the crypto community is closely watching developments that could shape the future of digital assets in the United States. The outcome has important implications for regulatory clarity and the industry’s ability to innovate and grow without undue political interference.
According to a Polymarket poll as of October 17, Trump led Democratic candidate Kamala Harris by 19.7%.