Coinbase adds former Rep. Kendrick Meek as House tees up crypto vote

Former Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.) will join Coinbase’s global advisory board, the crypto trading giant first told The Hill.

Meek’s addition to the Global Advisory Council comes ahead of the House vote on the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, also known as FIT21.

What FIT21 makes is Major changes Regulation of digital assets, including virtual currencies, includes expanding the jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to regulate most as commodities. The bill received bipartisan support in the House Agriculture and Finance Committees last summer, but will need Democratic support for consideration in the House. later this month.

Meek represented Florida’s 17th Congressional District from 2003 to 2011 and was a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee, and the Congressional Black Caucus. He also served as Chairman of the Board of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.

Coinbase estimates that approximately 52 million Americans own cryptocurrencies, and 41% of them identify as “racially diverse.”

“As we work to address the compounding economic stressors of our traditional financial system, digital assets are an important part of the system that has plagued our financial system and failed too many Americans. And now more than ever, there is a need for a fairer and more inclusive financial system for Black and Hispanic Americans and other underserved communities. There is a heightened sense of urgency,” Meek said.

The former congressman will join a board of high-profile Washington insiders.

Last November, Coinbase added former Defense Secretary Mark Esper and former Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Florida) and other policy heavyweights to its global advisory board, which it launched last May. Inaugural members include former Sen. Patrick Toomey (R-Pennsylvania) and former Reps. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) and Sean Patrick Maloney (New York).

“I look forward to using my seat on the Board to support U.S. leadership in shaping the future of digital assets and embedding protections for vulnerable communities,” Meek said.