Today Bitcoin moves higher as Fed chair Powell says it's time for us monetary Policy to change as vice president kamla Harris accepts her party's nomination For President we talked to better Markets Dennis kellerer who says that She should not embrace the crypto Industry and Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon walks us through why his state is Looking to create the first US governmen Issued stable Token welcome to cnbc's crypto world I'm Sallos it is a day of gains for the Crypto Market thanks in no small part to Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell the Head of the Central Bank spoke at the Fed's meeting in Jackson Hall Wyoming Where he said that after months of Rising rates that quote the time has Come for policy to adjust many investors Both on Wall Street and in the crypto Markets have long anticipated cuts to Interest rates here in the US and while The chairman of the FED didn't signal When or how much rates might come down The shift in sentiment was enough to R Stocks and crypto by noon Eastern Bitcoin jumped 1.8% now above the $61,000 mark ether crossed back above $2,600 and salana Rose to $144 now over the past 7 Days Bitcoin Gained about 2.8% while ethereum added About 1.7% fairly modest compared to recent
Swings in those assets but it is still On track to beat the S&P rise of 8/10 of A Per. okay politics has been front and Center this week with the Dem Democratic National Convention taking place in Chicago just last night vice president Kamla Harris accepted her party's Nomination for president saying that she Would be a realistic president who Focuses on Common Sense Thursday's Finale to the DNC caps off an Unprecedented month for Dems and for the Vice president who rocketed to the Forefront of the democratic party and Brought a wave of enthusiasm with her Now in terms of crypto that enthusiasm Comes inart from the hope that she could Take a much different stance on industry Than President Joe Biden Bloomberg Reported earlier this week that the VP Could support emerging Tech like crypto In a potential Administration but there Are some who are cautioning the vice President to resist calls for her to Take back this industry Dennis kellerer The CEO of better markets wrote in an Op-ed ahead of the DNC that kamla Harris Should not cave to the overtures from The crypto crowd our Brandon Gomez spoke To kaher about that piece and about how Vice president Harris's opponent Donald Trump is embracing the crypto Space uh so look I was reading through
This oped kamla Harris should not cave To overtures from the crypto crowd uh You know industry Lobby group seeking a Lighter touch from the cftc regulation Rather than SEC Oversight been following the DNC this Week uh not a lot of mention of crypto There so it seems like at least the Advice that you're offering is being Heated uh why should she not be sort of Leaning into this crypto craze well look I think for and most importantly is Crypto is not among the top 10 20 or 50 Concerns of the American people frankly Um you know the industry's put out a lot Of propaganda about exaggerated numbers Of Americans uh who care about crypto But the FED has surveyed this the Federal Reserve and only about 18 Million Americans uh have even used or Owned crypto and there are what 340 Million Americans so there's very very Few people who care about this um and It's interesting the 88% of Americans Who have heard of crypto a super Majority 75% of them um have a negative Or hostile view of crypto and really Importantly if you're running for President uh there was this great survey That showed between 61 and 75% of Voters In six of the key swing states have a Negative view of crypto so there's a lot Of reasons but primarily the American People the vast majority of them don't
Care about it Secondly look after 15 years of effort And claims uh that crypto has some value Or use there's still no legitimate uh Valid socially acceptable use of crypto It's used by Financial predators and Criminals worldwide the least harmful Use of crypto at the moment is just wild Speculation and gambling and even that Is mostly resulting in wealth extraction Not wealth creation there's a third Reason that vice president Harris should Not bother with crypto and that's Because it has a lawless business model It's basically Tes it takes the position That the Securities Commodities and Banking laws don't apply to it and vice President Harris when she was attorney General and district attorney and even As vice president has a long and strong Record of uh investor protection uh Consumer protection and financial Stability she stood up to the banks and She's leaning into that in the camp Campaign now and she stood up to be a Protector again she's against junk fees And protecting investors and consumers That's the opposite of crypto and Finally and importantly um crypto Targets praise upon and victimizes Communities of color Disproportionately look they're rightly Skeptical for decades of discrimination Against them they're skeptical of the
Traditional Financial system uh Appropriately but that doesn't mean that The gimmick of crypto which actually is Going to cost more money and make them Lose money more than the traditional Financial system and therefore they're Being victimized disproportionately and That's another reason why vice president Harris should stick to the core elements Of the financial system and the banking System support them and support a Growing economy uh that creates wealth Rather than extracts wealth and stay Away from an industry that has no valid Use that's largely used by criminals and Predators and disproportion hurts Communities of Color there's a lot of points to unpack There and I definitely want to get Through at least a handful of them Obviously but I would like to start off With the idea that um of crypto's use Case right because there is this Narrative and there is a lot of Institutional buy in with a lot of the Spot Bitcoin ETFs and eth so some Americans granted perhaps Americans on The margin given how many actually are Uh invested in or concerned with crypto Matters um might be saying well look you Know there was the FTX collapse Sam Bankman freed we sort of un uncovered The underbelly of the crypto industry And now it seems like the institutions
Are sort of retaking the narrative Reclaiming The Narrative and trying to Find as you're talking about a Legitimate use a stable coin say that's Federally regulated I mean are those Conversations all for not or is that Actually a direction that this industry Could go that would be a positive that Maybe a a VP Harris ticket could make Comment on Well look I think vice president Harris Like everybody else in the current Administration um are all for Innovation And New Uses in Technologies whatever They may be look Innovation is the fuel That drives our economy um that creates Businesses that employs people um Ideally raises living standards and Creates broad based broad-based wealth But all Financial products have to be Properly regulated and have customer and Investor protections and if the crypto Industry wanted to bring itself within Um the law and stop breaking the law and Comply with the Securities laws the Banking laws the commodity laws like Every single other financial industry in The country right they're looking for Special treatment they're claiming They're special and they don't have to Follow the law and they want special Treatment but everybody from the biggest Banks on Wall Street to the smallest Broker in the smallest town in America
Comply with the Securities Commodities And banking laws only the crypto Industry says not us so look that has All generated that Matrix of laws and Rules has resulted in very Well-regulated markets in the United States they are the Envy of the world Right but it's well-regulated markets That allow Industries to grow Innovation To flourish jobs to be created but but It requires investor customer and Financial stability protections at the Same time and if crypto wants to Actually adopt and follow the follow the Law and adopt customer investor and Financial stability protections they'll Be welcomed with open arms the problem Is that it will crush their profit Margins they have predatory they have a Predatory business model that generates Outsized predatory profits and that's Why they're using those profits to buy Politicians to get special interest Legislation to get the veneer of Legitimacy from regulation but what they Want is the least capable smallest least Funded regulatory agency the cftc that They can capture and have the appearance Of Regulation without the reality of Regulation if they were serious about Becoming a legitimate business they Would welcome regulation by the SEC Instead of viewing the SEC as their Mortal enemy so and I find it
Interesting because on that note I would Sort of pose the question to you if you Feel that former president Donald Trump Although he is being sort of portrayed Now as the crypto Forward Thinking Candidate of the two slates of the two Tickets um by that measure what you're Talking about more regulation um for Sustainability of the industry I mean Should he be viewed as the more crypto Forward Thinking candidate well not Saying more regulation I'm saying they Should not be treated specially and get Special non-existent regulation or the Appearance of Regulation went the Reality of it we're not saying they Should be regulated any more than Anybody else we're saying the Securities Laws the commodity laws and the banking Laws apply to everybody as to Donald Trump look he has a four sales sign Around his neck any audience he's in Front of he'll promise them anything if They'll give him campaign contributions He said crypto I support you give me a Campaign contribution he went to the Fossil fuel industry he said I'm going To get rid of all your regulations you Should send me a billion dollars he went To the CEOs and he said you should Support me because I'm going to lower Your taxes um so yeah in the campaign he Has said he's going to be favorable to Crypto um but you know nobody can take
That to the bank pun intended when he if He gets elected because he's made a Promise to anybody who will give him a now at the same time big name Republicans are embracing crypto and Looking for ways to bring the technology To their constituents Wyoming often a Leader in crypto Innovation passed a Bill earlier this year that created the Wyoming stable token commission and the Goal of that new group is to create the Country's first US government issued Stable coin the push for this stable Token comes as many in the crypto space Grow cautious of a central bank digital Currency or cbdc so while at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium just days ahead of The fed's own meeting in Jackson Hall Crypto world's ten ke spoke to the State's Governor Mark Gordon about the Project and what he hopes it will do to Benefit Wyoming Residents we've been talking this week And I've spoken with some colleagues of Yours about the Wyoming stable token Project um it's very exciting very you Know Forward Thinking unsurprisingly for A state like Wyoming what does success Of this project look like to you 5 years Down the road because I imagine that There are a bunch of challenges and it's Very it it's new and it um intricate so What does success look like to you well So I think success is um adoption of
Understanding a domestic stable coin Stable token uh and and having a system That's transparent that is fully backed By our short-term treasuries that's Dollar dependent uh and and you know I Think one of the big things for me is to Be able to on be bring back onshore a Lot of our a lot of our debt because if It's bought by treasuries and supported By treasuries uh it will it will um help To stabilize that market to a degree it Is clear to me that um digital assets Are going to have a future and it has Been something I've talked about for Some time that the United States has to Address this issue Washington's being a Little bit stodgy which is why Wyoming Being a Nimble and entrepreneurial State Can make a difference what inspired this Um you know Was doing some reading I know this goes Back about a year or so uh how did this Come about this idea so whyoming has Really put a marker down on um building A kind of a universe I've had over 30 Bills that I've that I've signed there's Been some effort beforehand to try to Figure out things to do with digital we Have what we call our special purpose Depository institution Speedy Banks We've tried to um Wyoming has a long History of of innovation From the LLC being built here in Wyoming And so on and so forth the the stable
Token came up about two and a half years Ago the first iteration of it was one That I couldn't support because I think There was a whole bunch of hype around It and what it was going to be able to Accomplish I didn't feel that Wyoming Had uh really thought about it carefully Enough so when the second iteration came And what we're doing now is to make sure That we have have a fully transparent Fully backed digital stable token that We hope to be able to release q1 of 2025 and we've really taken a deliberate Approach to it um you know being aware Of the fact that uh there are federal Regulatory pressures that might be Challenging we've wanted to do that in Full light of what they are looking at Plus to be able to understand what their New regulations might be so that we can Adopt a policy that will make it easily Acceptable q1 is coming right up I Understand you're making a bunch of new Hires to help get this in place uh you Know talking to potential vendors Thinking about which platforms which you Know blockchain networks this is going To run on what are some of the biggest Challenges that you're facing in such a Short period of time well I don't think The technology is all that difficult I Mean we've seen a lot of people that Have that have already been able to Stand these things up as I say I think
The the for for adoption I think the Most important thing is being confident That it's well regulated that it's Domestically Transparent um and and that we are able To move forward um in a very methodical Way these are the challenges that need To happen in terms of what chains we're Going to go on we're going to start with One and then be able to adopt it a Little bit further in terms of the Platforms I think that the other piece Uh then know your customer and anti- Money laundering AML kyc pieces are are Going to be a little bit more Challenging for us and that's one of the Things we're really working on but we Have been you know we have not been idle Over the last year we've been very Aggressive there are different types of Stable coins out there uh and a concern In the past has been around a ding which Happens and you you know for various Reasons Market events that does happen So what do you say to people who are Concerned about that what kind of Measures do you think that you'll be Putting in place to avoid that to the Extent that you can well this is fully Reserved uh and and part of what we've Been working out with Flavia Naes and Others helping to advise us she's on our Commission uh is to make sure that we Can fully
Um back whatever it is we're going to do And plus the fact I think our Legislation says that uh when a person Buys a treasury or a repo we're we're Going to have that in evidence you're Going to be able to see that so Hopefully we can avoid the de pegging Issues that come I don't want you to Speak for other jurisdictions here but We've seen a Miami coin an ny coin how Is this I mean so many ways probably but First and foremost what is the big Differentiator here and how do you Convince people that it's not going to Be like one of these previous projects That we've seen well I I think the Measured approach that we're taking Number one I early on people were saying Oh my gosh this is going to be a great Consumer tool and we're going to see Huge amounts of money that the state's Going to going to make off of this and Everything else along those lines about Sort of the the come what we said was we Want to make sure the mechanics of how We run this are are clear and Understandable that our regulatory Package is is uh appropriate and and can Handle the issues that are there nobody Has the same uh set of legislation that We do we're really out in the lead there We've got Nebraska following we got Colorado governor polus is always Talking about how he wants to follow
That there's other states that have done That as well frankly um we feel strongly That because Wyoming's being thoughtful And because we're being careful in how We approach this uh and because we're Doing it first within the state of Wyoming where we can avoid some of the Federal Interference um that that we'll be able To make a an offering that will be Ultimately very Attractive okay that's all for crypto World this week we'll be back again on Monday and we'll see you then [Music]
