Open-source lawfare and bitcoin’s defense with Peter Van Valkenburgh | The Last Free Americans

Dec 9, 2025

Peter Van Valkenburgh, Executive Director of Coin Center and cryptocurrency policy expert, discusses the critical battle for financial privacy and self-custody rights. He draws parallels between today’s digital sovereignty challenges and the 1990s crypto wars. The conversation dives into the risks developers face while creating privacy tools, the constitutional backbone of digital privacy, and the implications of regulatory actions on self-custody. By advocating for permissionless blockchain innovation, Peter emphasizes that defending these rights is vital for individual freedom and the future of open-source technology.

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ANECDOTE

From Actor To Crypto Policy Advocate

Peter Van Valkenburgh left acting and web design to study law and defend the open internet through policy work.
His early tweets about a law school paper led Jerry Brito to recruit him for what became Coin Center.

INSIGHT

Permissionless Innovation Is The Mission

Coin Center defends permissionless blockchain innovation, not any single chain.
Peter stresses privacy is a major unresolved issue for Bitcoin and supports the freedom to build privacy-focused chains.

ADVICE

Educate Congress With Clear Comparisons

Educate policymakers clearly about how Bitcoin differs from banks and typical online services.
Explain where regulation fits, like when companies custody funds versus when users self-custody.

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Peter Van Valkenburgh is the Executive Director of Coin Center, a leading nonprofit research and advocacy group focused on cryptocurrency policy. In this episode, Peter joins The Bitcoin Frontier to explore why defending the right to self-custody is about much more than bitcoin — it’s about the future of individual freedom, open-source innovation, and financial privacy. We dig into the parallels between the 1990s “crypto wars” and today’s digital sovereignty battles, the threats facing developers of privacy tools, and the constitutional foundations for privacy and property in the digital age.

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TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 – Intro and Peter’s journey from acting to bitcoin policy
2:00 – Discovering the cypherpunks and the roots of internet freedom
4:00 – Entering bitcoin through law school and meeting Jerry Brito
6:00 – Founding Coin Center and defining “permissionless innovation”
9:00 – The mission: protecting the freedom to build and use open blockchains
11:00 – Bitcoin’s privacy problem and the legal risks of building privacy tech
13:00 – Educating DC: explaining bitcoin to Congress in the early days
16:00 – Navigating the SEC, ICOs, and defining what counts as a security
18:30 – The evolution from education to constitutional litigation
22:00 – Bitcoin as the revival of a “bearer instrument” economy
26:00 – The “secret right to cash” and the Fourth Amendment’s blind spot
30:00 – Privacy, property, and what bitcoin reveals about constitutional limits
35:00 – The Keep Your Coins Act and why it matters for financial sovereignty
43:00 – The DOJ’s shift toward prosecuting developers — and why it’s dangerous
46:00 – Inside the Tornado Cash and Samurai Wallet prosecutions
50:00 – How Coin Center is fighting for software publishing rights
54:00 – Legislative progress: Clarity, Keep Your Coins, and BRCA
1:00:00 – Lessons from the 1990s encryption wars
1:03:00 – How liability protections shaped (and centralized) the internet
1:08:00 – The convenience dilemma: why self-custody must become easier
1:12:00 – The Bank Secrecy Act, mass surveillance, and new legal challenges
1:19:00 – Coin Center’s constitutional lawsuits for privacy and association rights
1:23:00 – Why the BSA is ripe for reform — and bitcoin’s role in that debate
1:27:00 – Zero-knowledge proofs, AML, and a future of privacy-preserving compliance
1:29:00 – How self-custody wallets enable digital identity and personal sovereignty
1:31:00 – Closing thoughts: bitcoin as the foundation for a freer digital future

WHERE TO FOLLOW US:
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→ Peter Van Valkenburgh’s Twitter: https://x.com/valkenburgh