Coinbase Urges Support For Pro-Crypto Candidates, Donates $25M To Fairshake

Cryptocurrency giant Coinbase has urged the industry to support candidates in the upcoming election who embrace the digital assets space, so the sector can get "regulatory clarity."

In a Monday blog post, Coinbase noted that it is an "apolitical company" when it comes to issues outside its mission. However, "when it comes to our mission of increasing economic freedom by growing the adoption of cryptocurrencies, we are deeply engaged in policy efforts."

The crypto titan then laid out ways through which the booming industry can get the regulatory clarity it has been asking for from the U.S. Securities and Exchange (SEC) and the government.

Among such routes is asking the court for clarity "by creating new case law." The industry can also approach Congress to get legislation related to crypto regulation. However, Coinbase acknowledged that such paths can take a long time and "a few holdouts can create big issues."

Such was the case with the SEC's Staff Accounting Bulletin 121 (SAB 121), which requires crypto custodial firms to hold their clients' assets within their balance sheets. Lawmakers in both chambers of Congress passed a bill that overturns the bulletin, but President Joe Biden ultimately vetoed the bill late last week. He said he would not support measures that "jeopardize the well-being of consumers and investors."

Since the path toward getting legislation related to cryptocurrency regulation can be long and arduous, Coinbase believes "the best way to get regulatory clarity in democratic countries is to elect pro-crypto candidates on both sides of the aisle, and to vote anti-crypto candidates out of office."

As part of its efforts toward the said cause, Coinbase has donated an additional $25 million worth of the stablecoin USD Coin (USDC) to help fund the Fairshake SuperPAC.

The company went on to note that both the House of Representatives and Senate help determine what type of crypto legislation will be passed, among other things, so increasing the number of pro-crypto members is "critical" to finally obtain clarity for the sector.

Coinbase's call to rally support for pro-crypto candidates comes a few weeks after the SEC told the court that the crypto behemoth can't force it to write up new rules for the digital assets space since "none" of the reasons Coinbase provided to defend its request were justified.

Coinbase has received the support of the Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI) and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (USCC) in its bid to push the SEC for new rulemaking tailored toward the crypto industry.