Former Representatives Tim Ryan, David McIntosh to lead new Bitcoin policy group

Two former congressmen are heading back to Washington to spearhead a non-partisan effort to talk up the benefits of bitcoin. 

Former representatives Tim Ryan of Ohio and David McIntosh of Indiana will chair BPI Action, an effort tied to the Bitcoin Policy Institute that aims to “educate policymakers and the public about the economic and social benefits of Bitcoin and other digital innovations.” 

The 501(c)4 organization will be unveiled at the institute’s Bitcoin Policy Summit in Washington on Wednesday. 

“Traditional financial services have left a number of communities behind and without proper guardrails that encourage innovation. Bitcoin and other digital innovations can bring more underserved communities into financial inclusion,” Ryan, a Democrat who worked on crypto-specific legislation during his time in office, said in a statement shared first with The Block. “They can also encourage the development of alternative energy sources creating more American jobs.” 

BPI Action will join other crypto groups already in Washington, including the Blockchain Association, which just signed its 107th member, and the DeFi Education Fund. The Bitcoin Policy Institute supports academic research on Bitcoin and other “emerging monetary networks.” 

Congress eyes new rules for crypto

The new BPI Action group comes as Congress eyes new rules for cryptocurrency. Republicans recently proposed draft legislation as lawmakers weigh how to regulate stablecoins, and a broader, bipartisan bill that would set rules for the wider industry is also in the works. 

Meanwhile, key U.S. regulators like the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have ramped up oversight of major firms like Kraken, Coinbase and Binance. 

Next month, Ryan and McIntosh will take their Bitcoin policy show on the road to Miami for the Bitcoin 2023 conference. Ryan, the group’s chair, gave up his House seat when he ran unsuccessfully for Senate in the 2022 election cycle. McIntosh is the president of the conservative Club for Growth, which deployed a pair of crypto-focused super PACs during the last election.

Bitcoin Policy Institute co-founders Grant McCarty and David Zell said they hope the new group will “facilitate fact-based conversations around Bitcoin.”

We believe it will help policymakers and the public have a more honest conversation about the benefits to US-led innovation in this space,” McCarty and Zell said.