A16z Crypto names Miles Jennings as head of policy amid Washington's growing focus on crypto

As attention toward crypto ramps up in Washington, venture capital fund a16z crypto has tapped its general counsel, Miles Jennings, to become head of policy.

Founding general partner Chris Dixon announced the appointment on Tuesday and noted that Jennings' predecessor as head of policy, Brian Quintenz, will leave to face Senate confirmation to become the next U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission chair. The CFTC is one of the main regulators of crypto in the United States. 

"Excited to announce @milesjennings as head of policy for @a16zcrypto," Dixon said in a post on X. "Since 2021, he’s been shaping our policy views, and this role continues that work."

Jennings has been general counsel at the fund for over three years and was previously a partner at law firm Latham & Watkins, according to his LinkedIn profile. Jennings will be stepping into Quintenz's former role as discussions around legislation with hopes to have both stablecoin and market structure bills signed into law by the end of the year. 

Since President Donald Trump took office in January, several lawmakers have been set on several crypto-related issues, including rolling back a Biden-era crypto tax rule, investigations into debanking, and, more recently, advancing stablecoin legislation toward the full Senate last week. 

Trump announced his plans to pick Quintenz to lead the CFTC in February and is awaiting Senate confirmation. Before a16zcrypto, Quintenz served as a commissioner at the derivatives regulator from 2017 to 2021, where he oversaw the listing of the first U.S.-regulated bitcoin and ether futures contracts.