Hardly a well-known name in the crypto industry, former college football player and the young politician, Bo Hines, 29, got a high-profile appointment as an executive director of the Presidential Council of Advisers for Digital Assets, (or the “Crypto Council”) position on Dec. 23, 2024. What are his views on crypto?
Not surprisingly, Bo Hines is a pro-crypto politician – if he wasn’t, Trump wouldn’t have appointed him, given the bold support for crypto from the U.S. President-elect.
For years, Hines has been a consistent Joe Biden critic and a passionate Donald Trump supporter. This loyalty didn’t go unnoticed, and Trump endorsed Hines when the latter was fighting for the U.S. House seat in North Carolina in 2022. Trump called Hines an “America First patriot,” a “winner both on and off the field,” and “fighter for Conservative values.”
Thankfully, Hines’ views on crypto are far from being conservative. Throughout the years, Hines made only a few statements concerning cryptocurrencies. Although Hines was never an avid crypto evangelist, his statements clearly show that he sees cryptocurrency and decentralized finance as a remedy to various problems on the national and individual levels.
The statement from the Bo Hines For Congress website: Hines disapproves of overregulation and CBDCs
One of these statements is a part of the program that can be found on the website dedicated to Hines’ run for Congress. The mention of DeFi is found in the Economy section of the website.
As an ultra-patriot, Hines begins with the importance of the protection of American jobs and business at home and leans on the America First policies that will discourage businesses from fleeing the USA.
Then, Hines speaks about the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector as a way to boost individual financial independence and inclusion, which is rather a commonplace opinion.
Hines starts to show his vision when he states that he sees overregulation as a threat to innovation and future development of the DeFi sector. As a part of the Crypto Council, Hines will have to overcome many challenges in facilitating a balanced and delicate crypto regulation.
Seemingly, during the Congress campaign, Hines saw the DeFi as the self-regulating ecosystem based on principles of free market, empowering individuals and institutions to grow in terms of finance. The emphasis on individuals was crucial for Hines, as he stated that crypto gives individuals control over their funds and opportunities.
Another important statement that can be found on the Congress campaign website is Hines’ strong disapproval of the adoption of central banks’ digital currencies. Hines sees CBDCs as a threat to financial sovereignty and a violation of the decentralization principles.
Bo Hines on X: free speech and individual empowerment in finance
The only time Hines mentioned crypto on X before their appointment to the Crypto Council was on Jan. 17, 2024, when he called crypto “an epitome of individual empowerment in finance” and stressed that the government shouldn’t step in the organic growth of the sector. Ironically, now Hines is the one who’s stepping. We’ll see if he’s able to let the sector grow. “Decentralized finance is the way of the future if regulators don’t crush it,” he concluded.
Cryptocurrency is the epitome of individual empowerment in finance.
— Bo Hines (@BoHines) January 16, 2024
We don’t need the government stepping in and slapping burdensome regulations on financial innovation. This new sector needs the freedom to grow organically.
Decentralized finance is the way of the future if…
On many occasions, Hines took to X to support freedom of speech. The Bo Hines For Congress website mentions that free speech is “under assault from the Authoritarian Left in our country” and names free speech as one of the conditions for flourishing Democracy.
While Hines was speaking about the importance of freedom of expression on many occasions, in his remarks, he never made a connection between censorship resistance and blockchain. Considering the fact that blockchain is great for facilitating immutable, transparent, inclusive, and censorship-resistant networks, Hines, as a free speech maxi and crypto proponent, will probably appreciate the potential of blockchain in this regard.
Despite all the dedication to free speech, Hines has been silent about his plans as an executive director of the Crypto Council. Following the appointment, Bo Hines expressed gratitude to his patron, Donald Trump and said he’s thrilled to work alongside David Sacks, a “Crypto Czar,” appointed by Trump earlier. Hopefully, soon we’ll learn what the Crypto Council is going to bring to the table.