Election 2020: What's at Stake for the Crypto Industry

The 2020 U.S. presidential election will shape crypto policy for the next four years - even if no one's actually pitching crypto-specific positions.

On the ballot this year are President Donald Trump, former Vice President Joe Biden, Jo Jorgenson, crypto entrepreneur Brock Pierce and musician Kanye West.

Biden hasn't made any public statements on it, though his campaign joked it would not ask for bitcoin donations after his Twitter account was hacked in July alongside numerous other crypto exchanges, influencers and media sites.

Neither candidate has made crypto and blockchain a campaign issue.

The election's most direct impact on crypto policy will likely come through the federal regulators the President will appoint and the Senate will confirm.

The chairs of the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the secretaries of Treasury and State are just a few individuals who shape the U.S. government's approach to crypto.

Not everyone, of course, thinks the election will bring big changes to the crypto industry.

"I think the crypto space and participants in the crypto space's best bet in thinking about a potential Biden win is to sell people on the idea this is pro-consumer and healthy for the economy," he said.

While the President might set the tone for crypto regulation next year, a large part of the government's approach will be decided by Congress.

Smith said she expects to see more lawmakers start looking at crypto next year.