Will the U.S. elections impact crypto markets? Insiders weigh in

SINGAPORE — Cryptocurrency insiders downplayed the potential impact of the U.S. presidential election in November on the market here in the Lion City, even though some also said that former President Donald Trump is seen as more crypto-friendly.

“Between [Vice President Kamala] Harris and Trump, Trump is certainly the favorite from a cryptocurrency perspective,” Charles Hoskinson, co-founder of the Ethereum blockchain, told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia” Wednesday, on the sidelines of TOKEN2049 in Singapore, one of the world’s largest annual crypto conferences.

In July, the former president was a keynote speaker at the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville, where he promised to ensure that the federal government never sells its bitcoin holdings and teased a plan to make the U.S. a “crypto capital of the planet.”

“But the reality is, regardless of if the U.S. is pro-crypto or not, the world is moving on,” Hoskinson continued, adding that authorities across the world have rolled out regulatory frameworks, from Singapore to the European Union.

“As an American, it would be nice to see our country get back into the race and build things, but regardless, it’s not going to change the reality that the world will be decentralized,” Hoskinson said.

Anthony Scaramucci, founder and managing partner of SkyBridge Capital, a global alternative investment firm, predicted that if Harris were to win the election, her handling of crypto regulation would largely be the same as Trump.

“I think you’ll start to see her flesh out her economic policies and where she stands on cryptocurrency regulation and I’m very optimistic,” he said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”

Scaramucci, who has endorsed Harris in the race, also argued that while Trump has signaled that he’s pro-crypto, “it’s hard to know which direction he’s going to go” in office because he’s an unpredictable politician.

The Trump family recently launched a new crypto project called World Liberty Financial. Goals set by those involved in the project suggest that it will resemble a crypto banking platform.

Meanwhile, Jeremy Allaire, CEO of digital currency company Circle, said that cryptocurrency regulation will not become a partisan issue in this U.S. election cycle, noting Congress’ recent support of the industry.

“No matter who wins the White House, Congress itself is set to act, and there’s really good work that’s being done from both sides of the political spectrum,” Allaire told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia.” “The reason for that is that these are technologies that the United States needs to compete and win in.” 

Still, crypto individuals and firms have sent more than $190 million to various candidates and PACs ahead of the election, according to Federal Election Commission data compiled by crypto market and blockchain analyst James Delmore and independently verified by CNBC.

Delmore said that spending has been more balanced between the two parties than in previous cycles, but that more has gone to Republican candidates and PACs that opposed Democrats this cycle.

Arthur Hayes, a prominent crypto trader and the former CEO of the BitMEX cryptocurrency exchange, dismissed the idea that U.S. politics would affect the global crypto markets.

“I also don’t think it really matters. Bitcoin has gone from zero to what it’s worth now with no clear regulations, no acceptance by governments. So why do we need it now? It’s irrelevant,” Hayes said.

– CNBC’s Zenith Wong and MacKenzie Sigalos contributed to this report.