US crypto adoption lags behind other countries, says CEO of Ripple – Cryptopolitan
According to Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, the US is already falling behind other countries in the cryptocurrency market due to regulatory unpredictability. He highlighted the United States’ decision to adopt the internet in the 1990s, despite its benefits being largely unknown at the time, and compared the technology’s potential to crypto.
Garlinghouse so in a recent interview with Bloomberg that nations such as Australia, Japan, Singapore, the United Kingdom and Switzerland have already implemented thorough regulations for the cryptocurrency industry, which has attracted investors and business people to operate there:
“There are many countries that have taken the time and thought to create clear driving rules.”
Crypto regulations should prioritize consumer protection
He advised the US government, especially the SEC, to follow suit and stop the flow of talent abroad.
“Look at the benefits to the US on a geopolitical basis: having Amazons and Google based and headquartered in the US,”
Garlinghouse said, using the early days of the Internet as an example. He praised the US for establishing proper regulations in the late 1990s that allowed it to transform into the technology hub it is today.
He believes that the optimal regulatory structure for cryptocurrencies should prioritize consumer protection. The SEC should also stop treating everything like it’s a nail and stop acting like a hammer while realizing that not all assets are securities.
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler recently reaffirmed his belief that “everything but bitcoin” is a security. As a result, he urged that the agency monitor and monitor all cryptocurrency transactions, with the exception of those involving BTC.
Ripple case update
In 2020, the American Securities and Exchange Commission filed a lawsuit against Ripple, claiming that its officials had sold XRP tokens to investors without registering them as securities. Garlinghouse believes that the conclusion of the legal dispute, although not resolved, will be “crucial” for the industry as a whole.
The SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple is really about the industry as a whole and how the SEC plans to play offense and take on the entire market, not just Ripple or XRP.
The CEO expressed that the regulator should not establish regulations through enforcement. Instead, it should allow for technological advances while offering investors the highest level of security.
