Former White House Chief of Staff Joins Chamber of Digital Commerce

Insider’s Look

In a press release published on Sept. 23, Chamber of Digital Commerce founder Perianne Boring pointed out that the field of cryptocurrency required leadership from a diverse background. Boring says that Mulvaney’s governmental experience and the financial power of Goldman Sachs, Visa, and SDX can strengthen the group’s position. The former congressman has plenty of political experience at high levels. He was acting White House chief of staff from December 2018 to March 2020. What’s more, Mulvaney was the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau until 2018. The South Carolinian also served as director of the Office of Management and Budget until March 2020 when he joined the U.S. special envoy to Ireland. Boring said that Mulvaney’s experience was “very, very valuable” because it can help the Chamber of Digital Commerce navigate congress. Mulvaney had a brief flash in the political spotlight recently. The former congressman appears in Bob Woodward’s book on President Trump, “Rage.” The author describes Mulvaney as being against the attack on Iranian General Soleimani. Mulvaney told Fox News that this was not the case, despite Woodward’s claims of reliable sources.

Crypto in the House

This could be a big step for blockchain advocacy in the Untied States federal government. A number of congressmen have been advocating for unobtrusive regulation of crypto assets, even forming the Congressional Blockchain Caucus. Earlier this year, they petitioned the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to not treat Proof-of-Stake rewards as regular income. With major finance companies on board, the Chamber of Digital Commerce might not be striving for a bankless world. Cuy Sheffield, head of Crypto at Visa, argued for central bank digital currencies. In a July tweet he said central bank digital currencies, not decentralized ones, were likely to be the future of crypto.

1/ I'd argue that central bank digital currency (CBDC) is one of the most important trends for the future of money and payments over the next decade.

Regardless of anyone's personal views of whether it's good or bad, the reality is that global interest in it is not going away

— Cuy Sheffield (@cuysheffield) July 3, 2020

The trade association representing the blockchain industry has seen growing influence in Washington. In August, U.S. Congressman Tom Emmer spoke about blockchain in a town hall and also began accepting cryptocurrencies as campaign contributions. Boring, who has coordinated with Emmer in the past, expressed delight that he took blockchain to the public. Similar to others in the Blockchain Caucus, Mulvaney advocates for nurturing blockchain technology. He believes it is a way to keep the U.S. at the forefront of digital and financial technology. In a statement, he said:

“I’m excited to join this passionate team of leaders on their mission to foster industry-beneficial policy. I believe U.S. advancement of blockchain development and policy is crucial to our continued success as a global leader in technological evolution.”