Biden Officials Will Attend Bitcoin Roundtable in DC: Leaked Report

In a surprising turn of events, officials from the U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration are set to attend a Bitcoin roundtable in Washington, D.C., in early July, according to a report.

The roundtable is being spearheaded by Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and will be attended by Biden administration officials, lawmakers from both the House and the Senate, and billionaire Mark Cuban, according to documents shared with Bitcoin Magazine.

Rep. Khanna and Cuban were the only individuals whose identities were confirmed by the report.

The objective of the roundtable is to support innovations in Bitcoin and in the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem within the country.

Notably, Rep. Khanna is a pro-crypto politician who supported the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, better known as FIT21.

Last week, Cuban addressed attendees of Coinbase’s State of Crypto, where he said that current Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) head Gary Gensler could cost the incumbent President his office due to Gensler’s anti-crypto stance.

Decrypt reached out to Rep. Khanna's office but did not immediately receive a response.

This development comes as a positive surprise to market participants, as the current Biden administration has become infamous for its anti-crypto stance.

President Biden Vetoes Pro-Crypto Resolution, Defends SEC's Judgement

Capping off a dizzying week in both crypto and political spheres, U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday notified Congress that he has vetoed a bipartisan-passed resolution that sought to roll back a Security and Exchange Commission policy that critics said discourages banks from offering crypto custody services. “This reversal of the considered judgment of SEC staff in this way risks undercutting the SEC's broader authorities regarding accounting practices.” reads the notice from the White House. “...

On June 1, President Biden vetoed the Staff Accounting Bulletin (SAB) 121 bill, which received bipartisan support from the House. The incumbent President noted that the bill undermines the SEC’s authority and would cause harm to investors and consumers. The bill would have granted financial institutions the ability to custody Bitcoin along with other cryptocurrencies.

Interestingly, this apparent change of heart from the current Biden administration comes months ahead of the upcoming U.S. presidential elections and days after former U.S. president and presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump announced his unwavering support for Bitcoin and Bitcoin mining.

Crypto could play a huge role in the upcoming U.S. presidential elections, as both candidates are neck and neck, according to the polls. Thus, a pro-crypto candidate could have an edge over an anti-crypto candidate.

Trump or Biden? Why Crypto Could Decide the Next US President

With 144 days left until the November 5 election to decide the next president of the United States, the most recent data from the polling prognosticators over at ABC News' 538 report a statistical dead heat. However, their new electoral college modeling predicts that Democratic incumbent Joe Biden wins 53 out of 100 simulations, while presumptive Republican challenger Donald Trump wins the remaining 47 computerized scenarios—results that are well within the margin of error. With both party bases...

In building support among the crypto crowd, Trump vowed that he would never allow the creation of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) if he got re-elected. And earlier this month, the presumptive Republican nominee dubbed himself the "crypto president" during a fundraiser.

In May, the former U.S. president announced that his campaign will now accept cryptocurrencies as donations.

Edited by Stacy Elliott.