Before joining the government, 29-year-old Bo Hines had already invested in the cryptocurrency field for nearly a decade.

Author: Amrith Ramkumar, Wall Street Journal Reporter

Translation: Luffy, Foresight News

When Donald Trump selected Bo Hines for a senior position in the cryptocurrency department of his administration, executives in the crypto industry were taken aback.

After the announcement of this appointment last December, several executives recalled investigating Hines and discovering that he had been a college football player and had lost a congressional campaign in North Carolina, but beyond that, there was almost no background linking him to Bitcoin.

Now, Hines, the executive director of the President's Advisory Council on Digital Assets appointed by Trump, has become a liaison between the government, businesses, and Capitol Hill. This 29-year-old is effectively the day-to-day executor of the government's plans to promote the development of the cryptocurrency industry, working alongside prominent venture capitalist and head of AI and cryptocurrency affairs David Sacks.

Crypto industry executives say Sacks has taken on more of a role in setting the high-level agenda. They also noted that Hines' understanding of significant policy issues in the industry has impressed them so far. This Friday, Hines and the White House will host a cryptocurrency summit, inviting companies from the crypto industry to participate.

In an interview, Hines stated, "I’m like a quarterback, making sure everyone on the field is on the right path."

Hines is assisting the White House in pushing for relevant legislation to be passed through Congress in the next five months, outlining how cryptocurrencies will be regulated. He is evaluating the feasibility of establishing a national cryptocurrency reserve while also playing a role in overturning the Biden administration's regulatory actions against leading companies in the crypto industry.

Kara Calvert, the U.S. policy head at cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, who has met with Hines, described him as taking seriously the deadlines set forth in the cryptocurrency executive order signed by Trump in January. She said, "This is a tricky puzzle that needs to be unraveled, and he is doing well in that regard." The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently dismissed a lawsuit against Coinbase.

After pouring significant funds into Trump's presidential campaign and inauguration, and donating about $170 million last year to elect friendly legislators, the cryptocurrency industry has become an important player in Washington. Trump has expressed support for the industry and even launched his own Memecoin.

Hines, who received Trump's support, ran for a vacant House seat in his hometown of North Carolina in 2022.

Before joining the government, Hines led an "anti-woke" media company. The company collaborated with a cryptocurrency project that issued a Trump-themed Memecoin, which saw significant fluctuations in value last year.

What many in the industry did not know at the time of his appointment was that Hines learned about the cryptocurrency industry while attending a bowl game sponsored by a Bitcoin company, and he has been investing in cryptocurrencies for nearly a decade since. To avoid conflicts of interest while serving in the government, he sold his cryptocurrency assets. He also studied cryptocurrency regulatory issues in law school.

Dan Spuller, senior director of industry affairs at the Blockchain Association, stated, "He is one of the few who can balance both the cryptocurrency space and Trump's 'Make America Great Again' ideology."

Critics argue that the desire to push cryptocurrencies into more mainstream status may have downsides.

Minnesota Democratic Senator Tina Smith stated, "If you start integrating cryptocurrencies into the financial system, you must be very sure that there are corresponding protections in place to limit potential harm." She has not yet met with Hines.

Hines will be at the center of the debate regarding legislation on stablecoin regulation, a widely used cryptocurrency typically pegged to government-issued currencies like the dollar.

Bills that will delineate the regulatory boundaries between the SEC and the CFTC are expected to spark a chaotic debate.

There are also divisions among companies regarding a national digital asset reserve. If a national digital asset reserve could lead to new government purchases, it is seen as a potential boon for the industry. Hines stated that the government first needs to account for the cryptocurrency assets it currently holds.

According to insiders, in recent weeks, Hines has considered replacing the President's Advisory Council on Digital Assets, composed of industry executives, with a series of summits. Trump is expected to speak at the summit hosted by the White House this Friday.

In 2014, wearing jersey number 82, Hines was a wide receiver at North Carolina State University.

Before recently moving to Washington, Hines spent most of his life in North Carolina. Football is a sport that runs in his family: his father briefly played for the Detroit Lions.

In 2014, young Hines became an outstanding wide receiver as a freshman at North Carolina State University, catching passes from Jacoby Brissett, who would later play in the NFL. He later transferred to Yale University, where a shoulder injury ended his athletic career, and then he attended Wake Forest University School of Law, studying issues including how the CFTC regulates cryptocurrencies.

According to Hines' former professor Raina Haque, Hines showed interest in the field but was not a fervent Bitcoin supporter. She said, "He is not the kind of person who sees cryptocurrency as a panacea for all the world's problems."

In 2022, Hines ran for a vacant House seat in his hometown of North Carolina and echoed Trump's claims about the 2020 presidential election being stolen. Trump supported Hines, but he lost in a closely contested race. His campaign funding came from a trust fund and a political action committee founded by former FTX executives.

Hines faced criticism from Democrats for distributing China-made hats to voters while calling for an "America First" economic agenda.

Hines ran for a House seat again last year but lost in the primaries.

During Hines' playing days, he participated in the 2014 Bitcoin St. Petersburg Bowl, sponsored by Bitcoin payment processor BitPay. The game's logo featured an orange circle with a white "B," a symbol commonly used to represent cryptocurrency.

Shortly after participating in that game, Hines purchased Bitcoin for the first time and then began investing in other crypto assets. He said, "Their marketing worked."

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