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"It doesn't really help to have members of his family do encrypted projects of their own," Carter said. "I understand that they are interested in the industry and want to engage with it, but the optics are not that favorable around that."
But for the most part, that behavior is being ignored as the crypto industry prefers to focus its attention elsewhere even as the president's job approval broadly sits at just 43%, according to an average of recent national polls.
At the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Jonathan Gould has signaled support for issuing new bank charters to crypto firms. During President Joe Biden's presidency, that was almost unthinkable.
"We'll see a lot of new crypto firms getting bank charters," Carter said. "And new banks getting set up that are expressively focused on crypto and stablecoins."
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, under interim chair Travis Hill, is also making moves. Crypto fans have applauded his efforts to expose what industry insiders call "Choke Point 2.0," an alleged coordinated effort by regulators during the Biden presidency to pressure banks into severing ties with crypto.
Paul Atkins, the new chair of the SEC, represents a stark contrast to predecessor Gary Gensler, who was a notorious hardliner when it came to crypto regulations and enforcement. Carter said the SEC under Atkins has already begun working directly with crypto stakeholders, including Castle Island, to craft guidance on token issuance and the line between securities and commodities.
"This is the clarity we've been asking for," Carter said. "Even barring a legislative solution, I think the SEC is going to come out with real guidance around tokens and how a domestic crypto firm can operate."
Atkins made his first public appearance just four days into the job by opening a crypto roundtable — a move that sent a clear signal to industry participants. Last week, Atkins hosted a half-day session at SEC headquarters in Washington, D.C., focused on crypto innovation and custody. The event took place weeks after the regulator formally dropped its long-running lawsuit against Ripple, a symbolic end to a four-year battle between the SEC and the crypto industry.
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