July 13, 2018
I strongly support approval of this Bitcoin ETF.
Bitcoin's decentralization brings something important and new to the financial space -- a way to store value without a single point of failure. After seeing how the Great Recession in 2008 was caused by the failure of "too big to fail" financial institutions, it is clear that our economy can be made much more robust by embracing a decentralized financial instrument as one component of our economy. This is something that people want, and something our country needs.
As a technical person with knowledge of the inner workings of Bitcoin, I am frequently asked by friends to help them understand how to store and use Bitcoin. One thing that has become clear to me from these conversations is that most people are eager to embrace this new, groundbreaking technology, but do not want to be responsible for maintaing the security of their own seed for large investments. An ETF is the next step in allowing institutions to provide cryptocurrency investment opportunities for their customers.
Since the last time the SEC considered a Bitcoin ETF, we have seen companies such as Coinbase and Xapo successfully build systems secure enough to safely store institutional investments. We have seen increased liquidity and price discovery through Bitcoin futures. And we have seen the introduction of governmental task forces to investigate potential price manipulation. The preconditions for a Bitcoin ETF have now been met, paving the way for ETF approval. Furthermore, this initial ETF requires a high enough initial investment that it will attract knowledgeable investors who have done their research and understand the potential risks and rewards.
At this point, interest in Bitcoin is so strong that refusal to approve the Bitcoin ETF will simply push consumers towards less regulated, less safe options to purchase and store Bitcoin. Approving the ETF is the correct next step that will bring about the safest result for investors.