In preparation for Joe Biden and his administration’s move into the White House, what does a Biden win mean for crypto with Gary Gensler as the lead of the financial policy transition team?

The 2020 U.S. election 

The rollercoaster that was the 2020 US Presidential Election shook the crypto sphere as a Joe Biden win was welcomed by bitcoin sportsbooks, whereas a Trump win was backed by Crypto gamblers.  

When Biden proved victorious, the world observed a small hiccup in Bitcoin’s value as prices dropped below $15,000, yet quickly recovered. Evidently, the price of Bitcoin is likely to continue to rise due to the lack of regulatory concerns currently.  

Biden’s Transition team 

With results out, rumours circulated as to what Biden’s Presidency would mean for the future of Crypto, and who were the rumoured nominees set to join Biden’s transition team. 

It was recently announced that crypto-savvy former Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chair Gary Gensler will lead the transition team as a financial expert to ensure a smooth handover with the Federal Reserve as well as banking and securities regulators. This move proved a pivotal sig for cryptocurrencies.  

Under former U.S. President Barack Obama, Gensler was appointed as chairman for the CFTC from 2009 until 2014; proving a pioneer for leading new derivatives rules in light of the 2008 financial crash. 

Described as having ‘Bitcoin on the Brain’ by the Wall Street Journal in 2018, Gensler currently serves as a professor at MIT on Blockchain, financial technology, public policy and digital currencies. 

‘Crypto-friendly’ Gary Gensler’s policies 

Biden stance on cryptocurrency under Gensler’s guidance could mean polices pushing for greater adoption as last year, he told Coindesk that:

The potential [for Blockchian] technology to be a catalyst for change is real,

While Gensler is an avid supporter for Blockchain and Crypto, he doesn’t think Bitcoin is a security. 

In the past, Gensler has also noted that cryptocurrencies need regulation in order to grow, and called for their protection telling Cointelegraph.com: 

I think that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) need more protection, and probably more protection than even the oil markets. 

On the topic of securities, Gensler has stated that Initial Coin Offerings, otherwise known as ICOs, and popular cryptocurrencies should be regulated as securities under the eyes of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Such include XRP and Ether.  

In the past he has also raised concerns about the lack of public policy framework for Blockchain tokens: 

More than $10 billion has been raised via ICOs, a blockchain-based fund-raising method. But a significant fraction of these are fraudulent, and many were launched in a way that is not compliant with US securities laws established in the 1930s”. 

The future of Crypto 

The general consensus suggests that Biden will be a good thing for crypto, with the rapid rise in Bitcoin prices after the election night  and with Gensler onboard, Bitcoin supporters are eagerly tuned in to see the next moves from Biden’s Administration.  

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