Vice President Kamala Harris touted her “opportunity agenda” during a campaign speech Monday night but did not elaborate on what that means for digital assets.
Earlier in the day, the campaign unveiled a broad agenda that included her first substantive policy stance on cryptocurrency. But anyone hoping for more details from her speech in Erie, Pennsylvania, was disappointed.
Harris didn’t even mention “blockchain” or “digital assets” in passing, as he has done before, let alone cryptocurrency.
“We are going to build a future that I call an opportunity economy, where everyone can compete and have a real chance not just to survive but to succeed,” she said in her speech Monday night.
Harris' campaign said earlier in the day that the "Opportunity Agenda" is aimed at strengthening support for her among black men.
“Vice President Harris knows that more than 20% of Black Americans own or have owned cryptocurrency assets, which is why her plan will ensure that owners and investors in digital assets benefit from a regulatory framework that protects Black men and others participating in this market,” a press release said.
The attached document echoes this message.
“Vice President Harris appreciates the ways in which new technologies can expand access to banking and financial services,” the document reads, before repeating a statement from the press release about the framework.
In contrast to Harris’ silence on the topic, former President Donald Trump made numerous overtures to the cryptocurrency industry, promising friendly regulators and saying he would appoint a “Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Advisory Committee” at industry conference Bitcoin Nashville.
Last month, Trump visited PubKey, a Bitcoin bar in New York City, and purchased a burger with Bitcoin with the help of bar staff.
Crypto industry players have commissioned a number of polls to gauge voter interest in the sector. A Harris Poll funded by crypto asset manager Grayscale (not affiliated with the vice president) showed that 77% of potential voters want candidates to understand cryptocurrencies, and 21% of respondents own at least some cryptocurrencies.
