Maintaining U.S. Leadership in Crypto with Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein

This week on What's At Stake, Michael Sonnenshein, CEO of Grayscale, joins Penta’s Bryan DeAngelis to discuss the latest happenings at Grayscale, the world's largest digital currency asset manager, in addition to the cryptocurrency industry more broadly. 

Bryan and Michael open on Grayscale's inception and the firm's active presence in D.C., including the significant time Grayscale has spent educating Washington about crypto.  Michael recounts Grayscale's history with the SEC: the years of successful collaboration with the Commission followed by the Commission's decision this summer to reject Grayscale's application to convert its signature fund, Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, into an exchange-traded fund (ETF). In order to protect its investors, Michael explains, Grayscale was left with no choice but to file suit against the SEC.

Michael and Bryan also discuss the state of U.S. crypto regulation more broadly. How the lack of regulatory guidance is pushing innovation outside the U.S., reducing benefits to the U.S. economy such as new jobs and tax revenue. Despite these frustrations, Michael explains that Grayscale has seen a substantial increase in awareness and engagement from  policymakers since they became active in D.C. five years ago.  

Bryan and Michael also share top insights from new research Grayscale released with Harris Poll, including survey results that found that a majority of voters in both parties agree that cryptocurrencies are the future of finance. The poll also found that there is strong consensus among surveyed voters on the desire for greater regulatory clarity, as well as the importance of lawmakers staying informed about crypto.

Read a Q&A about the Grayscale lawsuit here.

Read the Harris Poll survey results here.

Read about the launch of the Grayscale Digital Infrastructure Opportunities LLC here.