Katherine Snow, Messari legal director, said it’s a distraction for the industry when the focus should be on passing enabling legislation.
It promises to be a month of reckoning in the cryptocurrency world, with Sam Bankman-Fried, a former gold geek with the goods turned alleged crypto scammer, appearing in court to face conspiracy and fraud charges. With the media spotlight firmly on the unfolding courtroom drama, there is a real risk of legitimate cryptocurrency businesses trying to weigh in on scams and bad actors, rather than focusing on their customers and business strategy.
Katherine Snow is the Head of Legal at Messari, the leading market intelligence platform for the cryptoeconomy, where she drives policy and legal strategy in major jurisdictions around the world.
The Bankman-Fried trial has generated media attention—from the huge losses suffered by FTX’s clients and investors to his meteoric rise and fall as the world’s youngest billionaire and his drug-fueled scandals of alcoholism and polyamory in the Bahamas. At least eight Hollywood projects, accompanying books (*cough* Michael Lewis), and podcasts about FTX are waiting in the wings. The frenzy is expected to surpass even the recent Internet-mysteries of Gwyneth Paltrow’s skiing case or the spectacle of Depp vs. Heard.
Meanwhile, the industry has begun to gain a foothold in a cautious Washington, despite the odds, and the launch of the trial faces new resistance. Bankman-Fried’s actions must not be allowed to tarnish, rather than distract from, the industry’s good-faith work to advance common-sense regulation.
