Andrew Yang Shares Standpoint on Crypto Regulation, Blockchain Technology
- In an interview with Bloomberg, Andrew Yang talked about how we need a strict set of rules regarding digital assets.
- He also mentioned that blockchain technology has a high potential and that “we should be investing in it”.
Andrew Yang speaks in a craft brewery during the New Hampshire presidential primary in Manchester, N.H. on January 8, 2020. Andrew Cline/Shutterstock
Andrew Yang is the only democratic presidential candidate who accepts donations to his campaign in cryptocurrency. While other candidates competing in the democratic primaries have barely touched on crypto, Yang has been one of the few to talk more clearly and objectively about digital assets.
In a January 29 interview with Bloomberg’s Joe Weisenthal, Andrew was asked about his standpoint on cryptocurrency regulation and whether or not he supports people taking money out of traditional financial markets and investing them in cryptocurrency.
His answer was very clear – we need a “uniform set of rules and regulations around cryptocurrency use”. The current uncertainty surrounding the use of digital assets is getting in the way of innovation in the sector, with each state dealing with crypto activity in their own way, Yang said.
Andrew also mentioned that the underlying technology of cryptocurrencies has “very very high potential” and that he thinks that the United States should be investing in it.
He is not wrong. While the U.S. is busy stifling the digital assets market with ambiguity, China is advancing fast towards its own vision of a national cryptocurrency.
Yang was also asked directly if he supports the movement of capital into the crypto market, seeing as major institutions in the country make it very hard for people to interact with digital asset platforms.
He responded:
“Right now, people who are investing in these currencies are finding a way to do so and make use of their investments. I don’t think that you could impede it with regulation if you tried.”
With the Iowa caucuses set for February 3, we hope that some of the other presidential candidates will mention, at least, digital assets and their plans for the sector.
- New York Times sources have noted that federal prosecutors are digging deeper into the political donations made by Sam Bankman-Fried and his colleagues.
- While the former FTX CEO had donated around $40 million to Democrats in the last election cycle, Democratic groups have so far vowed to return only around $2 million.
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- Three major Democratic committees have reportedly vowed to return a little more than $1 million in political donations received from Sam Bankman-Fried.
- A super PAC supporting Senate Democrats, that received $1 million in donations from SBF, is also waiting on “proper direction from federal law enforcement” on how to return the funds.
- Aside from a few generic mentions, cryptocurrency has been left out of the 7 Democratic debates so far.
- The digital assets sector has matured enough to demand the attention of top-level lawmakers as regulatory uncertainty keeps hindering innovation.