- Speculations are rife that Ripple’s Garlinghouse could be considered for the U.S crypto council
- Council will help drive President Trump’s crypto deregulation agenda
Ripple founder and CEO Brad Garlinghouse is reportedly among the possible candidates for President Trump’s upcoming crypto advisory council. According to a New York Post (NYP) report, key influential crypto leaders and donors who supported the president are eyeing a seat on the council right now.
The report claimed that Garlinghouse, Coinbase’s Brian Armstrong, and Marko Santori (former Kraken legal counsel) are being considered. Frank Chapparo, host of The Block crypto podcast, is reportedly on the shortlist too.
Trump’s crypto deregulation efforts
Immediately after being elected in November, President Trump met with Brian Armstrong. However, the details weren’t made public. In fact, some pundits even claimed that the President sought his input on regulatory clarity in the space.
A similar presidential meeting with Ripple’s Garlinghouse also happened recently. Now, speculations have intensified that the deliberations might be linked to the think tank that will shape U.S crypto policy.
Garlinghouse was recently criticized for allegedly ‘sabotaging’ U.S BTC reserve plans and pushing for a “crypto stockpile” instead. Some BTC maxis, like Strike’s Jack Mallers, claimed that the Ripple Chief used millions of dollars to push the XRP agenda at the expense of BTC reserve plans.
That being said, NYP added that other contenders and large donors include Circle’s Jeremy Allaire and Crypto.com’s Kris Marszalek.
The report also noted that selection wouldn’t be purely based on donations, but also experience in the sector. It remains to be seen who the official council leaders will be.
The council was formed through the first presidential crypto executive order to maintain U.S dominance in “digital finance technology.” Part of the order’s goal is to create a crypto reserve, including BTC, and ban the establishment of a CBDC (central bank digital currency).
By extension, the council will be part of the President’s deregulation efforts in the sector to ensure it remains competitive on the global stage. The group will work closely with crypto and AI czar David Sacks.
Interestingly, the pro-crypto shift is already being felt on many fronts. For example, Solana, after being termed a “security” by the previous SEC regime, has seen advancement in recent ETF applications under the new administration.
A similar seismic shift was seen in the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation). FDIC is the alleged mastermind behind Operation ChokePoint 2.0, which de-banked crypto firms. Under the new acting FDIC chair Travis Hill, the regulator has changed its de-banking approach across the sector.
