In just a year, the crypto industry went from pariah to power broker in Washington D.C. Boosted by a hefty war chest and bruising political tactics, companies like Coinbase and Ripple gained the support of President Trump, who repaid them by pushing through long-sought legislation for the sector. Key to those efforts was Kristin Smith, now head of the Solana Policy Institute and the featured guest on the latest episode of Fortune’s Crypto Playbook vodcast (available on Spotify, Apple, and YouTube).
In 2018, Smith helped create the Blockchain Association, the first major crypto trade group in D.C., long before most politicians even knew about Bitcoin. Over a roller-coaster seven years, she helped top industry firms convince lawmakers of the importance of the technology, even as the collapse of companies like Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX sparked regulatory backlash that turned crypto into a political target.
