The Bitcoin and crypto industry is now focused on blocking or preventing the re-nomination of SEC Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw as the Senate Banking Committee prepares to vote on her appointment to another term at Wall Street’s main regulatory authority.
Crenshaw, a Democrat, was appointed to the commission by President Donald Trump in 2020 and then re-nominated by President Joe Biden for a second term.
If she is approved by the Senate Banking Committee and confirmed by the full Senate, she will become eligible to serve on the commission until June 2029.
Fox Business reports that the so-called anti-Crenshaw lobbying is now being carried out publicly via social media platforms such as X. Crypto and blockchain leaders are expressing concerns about Crenshaw’s anti-crypto stance.
Crypto executives cautioned that there could potentially be future political repercussions/consequences should lawmakers cast their votes to confirm her appointment.
A well-organized digital and mobile ad campaign was introduced around the Washington D.C. area. Crypto and blockchain industry support groups are reportedly sending letters to the Senate Banking team. In these letters, they are voicing their concerns as they pertain to her reconfirmation.
With only a few days left before the US Congress adjourns for the remainder of year, Republicans stated that the scheduling of Crenshaw’s vote (to be done next Wednesday at 9:45 am EDT) is an attempt by Democrats to undermine the mandate voters have given to president-elect Trump as well as Congress to restore the SEC to a pro-innovation agenda. This may involve creating a better regulatory framework for digital assets.
Republicans are expected to be in the minority until the beginning of the next Congress in January of 2025.
Senator Tim Scott, the South Carolina Republican and the committee’s ranking member, said that this “11th-hour push by Democrats to ram through President Biden’s nominees is a blatant attempt to hinder President Trump’s agenda.”
Cryptocurrency and Bitcoin investors are concerned that Crenshaw has been supportive of SEC chair Gary Gensler’s strict oversight of the digital asset sector (more like regulation by enforcement).
They now oppose her stance on the crypto markets, describing them as “petri dishes of fraudulent conduct.” Industry participants are also critical of her dissent from the SEC’s approval of bitcoin spot ETFs.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong noted via social media:
“Caroline Crenshaw was a failure as an SEC Commissioner and should be voted out. She tried to block the Bitcoin ETFs and was worse than Gensler on some issues (which I didn’t think was possible).”
Armstrong added that the crypto industry will now be monitoring the Senate Banking Committee’s vote.
He explained that any support for Crenshaw might negatively impact senators’ overall ratings on the Stand with Crypto ratings scale. This service, introduced by the Coinbase-associated advocacy group, assesses lawmakers’ overall support for progressive crypto regulations.
The Cedar Innovation Foundation, an industry-led group that supports the advancement of crypto and blockchain tech, introduced a mobile ad campaign in DC as well as across social media, calling Crenshaw “more anti-crypto than Gensler.” They emphasized her opposition to the bitcoin ETFs that Gensler had voted to approve.
The Blockchain Association and DeFi Education Fund issued a letter to Senate Banking leadership so that they can oppose Crenshaw’s reconfirmation.
They noted:
“Congress has a clear mandate from the American people to establish sound and reasonable cryptocurrency-related policies. Unfortunately, Commissioner Crenshaw’s tenure at the SEC has been marked by actions that seem to be at odds with this charge.”
At present, it is uncertain whether Crypto’s lobbying effort will succeed in preventing Crenshaw’s nomination.
If all Democratic members of the Senate Banking Committee vote in support of her, they would have the majority required to pass her to a full Senate vote.
According to sources cited by Fox Business, Chuck Schumer, the New York Democrat who will give up his role as Senate Majority Leader to John Thune in 2025, might hold a full Senate vote for Crenshaw this coming week to finalize the resolution to keep the government funded, the $895 billion defense spending bill, and vote on several of Biden’s judicial nominees.