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President Trump’s crypto advisory council, established by executive order during his first week in office, may not be shaping up to be exactly what the industry had envisioned.
Unchained reported yesterday that the council may be scrapped altogether. In its place, according to unnamed sources, the Trump team would organize “policy summits” to discuss legislation with industry stakeholders.
I’ve also heard that policy summits are on the table. Two other sources familiar with the matter told me that if there’s an advisory council at all, it would likely be made up of government employees rather than industry executives.
It’s no secret that a lot of people wanted roles on that council. The NY Post reported there were at one point two dozen seats up for grabs, although I haven’t been able to confirm that figure.
What I’m hearing: Trump’s team is trying to avoid having too many cooks in the kitchen.
On the one hand, they’re in a tough spot. They want to avoid alienating certain sections of the industry — many of which were big donors during the campaign — but the act of bringing everyone together will lead to inter-industry conflict. Enter the “policy summit” pitch.
It wouldn’t be unprecedented. The House Financial Services GOP retreat earlier this month featured a 45-minute presentation and Q&A with a16z’s Chris Dixon, according to people familiar. Industry execs and lobbyists are on the Hill all the time trying to inform policy.
We’ll be monitoring the council situation. You just monitor your inbox.
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