Key facts: Minnesota Governor Walz signed a law protecting users from cryptocurrency fraud. The politician is said to be unaware of the Bitcoin and cryptocurrency ecosystem. Kamala Harris, Vice President of the United States and Democratic presidential candidate, has officially chosen her running mate for the November elections. This is Tim Walz, who is currently the Governor of the state of Minnesota. In general, they are seen as a “blank slate” for the Bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrency ecosystem. who will face former President Donald Trump.
Via X, Harris reported that Walz will join her in the presidential race. According to her, He is a person who “has worked for working families”“It’s great to have him on the team,” said the US vice president. Walz, who has governed Minnesota since 2019, also served in the US House of Representatives. He was also a school teacher. and served as a non-commissioned officer in the Army National Guard.
Tim Walz's selection as vice president comes after the Democratic Party of the United States placed the weight of the presidential candidacy on Kamala Harris. On Monday, August 5, the organization confirmed that Harris will be the first black woman and of Asian origin to fight for the Oval Office chair. According to the Democratic National Committee, Harris won 99% of the delegate votes. Now, she joins the presidential race against Donald Trump, the Republican candidate. The vice president was supported by Joe Biden, who dropped out of his candidacy for reelection last month.
A distant relationship with cryptocurrencies
In essence, this politician has not had a close relationship with the cryptocurrency ecosystemnor has Vice President Harris. He did, however, receive donations from the failed crypto exchange FTX, which he returned last year. In detail, Walz received USD 4,000 from Nishad Singhwho was one of the most prominent figures of that bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange house. That money was donated at the end of October 2022, but after the scandal of that company exploded, he decided to return those funds in March 2023. In addition to his short relationship with FTX, Walz, as governor of Minnesota, signed a law earlier this year to protect consumers of that entity from cryptocurrency fraud. That legislation went into effect on August 1. As stated, the regulation, promoted by the Department of Commerce, Financial Institutions and Law Enforcement Divisions of Minnesota, establishes measures to ensure that cryptocurrency companies operate in that state with licenses and in compliance with the consumer protection law. That law also regulates cryptocurrency kiosks, which operate in a similar way to cryptocurrency ATMs. The legislation states that these premises, previously licensed, must disclose to consumers the terms and conditions of their business. They are also required to issue refunds and must Set a maximum daily transaction limit of USD 2,000 for new customers. Beyond the lukewarm nexus with FTX and the law to protect consumers from cryptocurrency fraud, Walz, who joins the US presidential race, has not had much connection with the emerging bitcoin ecosystem and cryptocurrencies.
Blank slate
For Cody Carbone, who is the Digital Chamber's policy director, Walz is, in essence, a kind of “blank slate” in the cryptocurrency field. This means that the politician's level of awareness about this ecosystem is not that high. That condition, in fact, is shared by Kamala Harris herself, who has not had close ties to bitcoin or cryptocurrencies. Although she has shown interest. For Carbone, the candidate has had the intention to advance in its communion with cryptoassets.
“This campaign has a lot of ground to make up compared to the Republicans and we hope that private outreach will soon turn into public support,” Carbone said. Either way, the Harris-Walz duo will be up against the Trump-Vance union. The latter, which has indeed had close contact with the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
For example, the former president promised that the future of that industry would be created in the United States if he were elected and he even participated in the most important Bitcoin conference in that country. Meanwhile, JD Vance has a fortune accumulated in BTC, as reported by BitcoinDynamic.