Coinbase-Backed Crypto Lobby Group Gears Up for Regulation With New Leader

When companies including Fidelity Investments’ digital asset arm, Coinbase (then known as Square Inc.) first formed their trade group last April, the largest crypto token was hovering around $60,000. Sheila Warren, previously an executive at the World Economic Forum, will be joining the group known as the Crypto Council for Innovation with prices across the asset class trending markedly lower and significant regulatory headwinds on the horizon.  

Warren and her new team at the Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI) intend to shape the narrative around digital assets as the U.S. and other countries move forward on regulations. 

“We’re in a critical moment for the crypto ecosystem,” Warren, who starts her new role on Feb. 2, told Bloomberg in an interview. She expects that the next two years will be especially important for the industry as digital assets become more widely adopted and governments seek to take a more active oversight role. 

The Crypto Council for Innovation’s members include Paradigm, which recently raised a record-breaking fund, as well as venture capital firms Ribbit CapitalAndreessen Horowitz. Prior to joining CCI, Warren held several posts at the World Economic Forum, including head of data, blockchain, and digital assets and member of the executive committee. 

She is taking up the CEO post as many crypto firms and advocacy groups are beefing up their presence in Washington, D.C.--motivated in large part by last year’s infrastructure bill, which added new tax-reporting requirements for crypto brokers that many in the industry have called overly broad. “The infrastructure bill was a massive wake up call to a lot of people,” Warren said.

In the short-term, CCI plans to focus on U.S. policy given the level of activity that’s occurring domestically--the White House is working on an executive order to create a government-wide strategy for digital assets. At the same time, the Federal Reserve is mulling a potential U.S. digital dollar and policy makers are examining how best to regulate stablecoins

The White House directive, in particular, will be key and hopefully provide crypto firms more clarity on how they should be regulated and by which government agencies, Warren said. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler has indicated he intends to more closely scrutinize cryptocurrency exchanges and wants them to register with his agency. 

• Read More: White House Is Set to Put Itself at Center of U.S. Crypto Policy

But Warren said CCI also wants to focus on global policy and she plans to continue engaging with other countries she developed connections with during her time at WEF. 

“Crypto is a global phenomenon and so being mindful and aware of what’s happening all around the world is going to be a very important part of what CCI does,” she said.