Kamala Harris Recruits Advisors With Binance Ties as Crypto Questions Persist

As Kamala Harris campaigns for the presidency following President Joe Biden's decision not to run, her stance on crypto remains unclear, though recent appointments hint at a potential shift towards a more favorable approach.

Harris has tapped David Plouffe, a former Obama aide and previous member of the Binance Global Advisory Board, as her senior adviser for strategy, Reuters reported Friday. 

Plouffe had been serving as a global strategic advisor for Alchemy Pay, where he contributed to the company's strategy, compliance, and government relations before transitioning to Harris’ team last week.

Harris has also recruited Brian Nelson, former undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence at the U.S. Treasury Department, according to a report by Axios last month.

Nelson was involved in the Treasury's actions against Binance for alleged money laundering and sanctions violations in November last year.

Despite this, Nelson's engagement with the industry has been described as open-minded and focused on regulating illicit activities without stifling innovation.

“Nelson has worked with [Harris] for years,” Cody Carbone, chief policy officer of blockchain trade association Digital Chamber, said in response to a tweet by Bitwise chief investment officer Matt Hougan.

“He’s kept a pretty open mind about crypto, and his policy team has gone above and beyond to engage with industry,” Carbone said. “He’s deeply concerned about illicit finance usage but hasn’t painted crypto as poison like others.”

Last month, Harris declined an invitation to speak at the Bitcoin Conference, a move interpreted by some as a reluctance to engage or even consider crypto a policy issue ahead of the November election.

Even still, the appointments hint at Harris' willingness to engage with crypto industry participants as questions linger regarding her stance against the asset class. 

Meanwhile, Harris has named Tim Walz, Governor of Minnesota, as her prospective Vice President. 

Walz's public statements on crypto are nonexistent, though he did sign a law last week establishing a maximum daily transaction limit of $2,000 for new customers using crypto ATMs in the state.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair