LEADING CRYPTOCURRENCY EXCHANGE CALLS FOR NEW CRYPTO RULES:

Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S., is calling on President-elect Trump and the new Republican Congress to designate the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as the cryptocurrency industry’s chief regulator.

Coinbase and venture firm Andreessen Horowitz were the biggest financial backers of Fairshake, a pro-crypto super PAC, which spent $173M during the 2024 election and helped unseat former Senate Banking Chair Sherrod Brown (D-OH). Coinbase has since donated another $25M to Fairshake to prepare for the 2026 midterm election.

“The message that we’re sending here, to be totally clear, is we’re just getting started,” said Coinbase president and COO, Emilie Choi, “We will not rest until 100 percent of the members of Congress understand and are pro-crypto.”

Why It Matters: With the end of the Biden Administration and a concerted effort to lobby Congress and oust unfriendly regulators, the crypto industry is poised to win some important legal and legislative battles over the next several years that could lead to digital assets being fully integrated into the traditional financial regulatory regime. The question is whether Trump’s new regulators will treat digital assets like traditional securities or give Coinbase and other crypto exchanges laissez-faire rules. If the Trump Administration pursues the former course, it will have to choose between the CFTC and the SEC to act as chief regulator. But if the Trump Administration takes the laissez-faire approach, which is more likely, Coinbase and other crypto exchanges will continue to face regulatory uncertainty and crippling lawsuits in the long-term.