Fidelity, Square, Coinbase, and Paradigm Launch Crypto Council

Fidelity, Square, Paradigm, and Coinbase are joining forces in a new lobby group seeking to help shape Bitcoin regulation, according to a press release published on Tuesday.

The Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI) says it seeks to "unlock the promise of crypto." Referring to itself as a "new alliance of crypto industry leaders," the newly formed council has set out to lobby regulators and policy makers to encourage "responsible crypto-related public policy." But there’s more than just policies, as the collaboration further seeks to fund and push research projects, and plans to form a board as well as an executive team to manage its intentions. 

The announcement gives no insight into specific plans or ongoing conversations led by the council.

The developments come as regulators around the world have added Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to their agenda. Last month, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) released an amended draft version of its guidance on virtual assets, causing an uproar amongst the Bitcoin community, which widely referred to the updated draft as "problematic." In an analysis at the time, research firm Coin Center expressed concerns over the vague and disproportionally far-reaching definition of virtual asset service providers (VASPs) in the draft, and criticized its scrutiny of peer-to-peer transactions and privacy-enhancing technologies.