Featured image from flickr.com, chart from TradingView.com
The crypto industry in the US may receive more support under the leadership of Kamala Harris compared to the current administration of Joe Biden.
Harris is more supportive than Biden, Trump ‘undoubtedly’ more favorable
Alex Thorn, head of research at Galaxy Research, recently shared a detailed policy scorecard on
Thorn noted that while a Trump win would undoubtedly be more beneficial to the broader crypto industry, a Harris win could still provide better support than the current Biden administration. He described the downside risk of a Harris presidency as “limited.”
For example, with regard to classifying digital assets as securities, the Biden administration has maintained an ambiguous regulatory stance, requiring the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to address the issues on a case-by-case basis.
In contrast, the Harris/Walz administration is expected to be “somewhat positive,” based on Harris’ recent statements in support of innovative technologies such as AI and digital assets. On the other hand, Trump has promised to fire SEC Chairman Gary Gensler and appoint a more pro-crypto replacement.
Another parameter is the difference in attitudes towards Bitcoin (BTC) mining. Although the Biden administration has proposed a 30% tax on mining, Harris is expected to be “slightly better” than Biden because of her Silicon Valley connections.
Notably, Trump strongly supports Bitcoin mining, viewing it as domestic production and promising that Bitcoin will be “made in America.”
While the Biden and Harris administrations are not expected to take a stealthy stance against cryptocurrency self-custody, the U.S. Treasury Department under Biden has sought to label non-custodial wallet providers as money transmitters. In contrast, Trump has explicitly vowed to protect the right to self-determination, as emphasized in a speech in Nashville in July 2024.
The Biden administration has expressed interest in formalizing rules regarding the regulation of stablecoins, proposing that banks be given exclusive authority to issue stablecoins.
Harris will likely follow Maxine Waters’ approach, advocating for stablecoins to be backed by safe reserves such as short-term government bonds, with the Federal Reserve and major banks playing a role in the issuance. However, Trump is in favor of allowing non-bank entities to issue stablecoins.
Harris is leaving no stone unturned to convince Crypto voters
Although the consensus seems to be that a Trump victory would enormous advantage digital asset prices and the broader industry, Harris has sought to attract crypto voters.
She recently shared her economic proposal and promised to do so support crypto regulation and digital assets. Moreover, so has Harris received $1 million in XRP in political donations from Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen.
Following Thorn’s analysis, trading firm QCP Capital declared that a Harris win may not be as bearish for crypto investors as some might think. BTC is trading at $66,412 at the time of writing, up 0.8% in the last 24 hours.
