Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong Visits White House Amid CLARITY Act Stalemate: Report

While Armstrong was among the group of people from Coinbase who visited the White House, it is not confirmed whether he met with President Donald Trump.

• According to crypto journalist Eleanor Terrett, three sources reported that Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong visited the White House on Tuesday.
• His reported visit comes after President Donald Truth accused banks of holding the CLARITY Act “hostage” in a post on Truth Social.
• Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said Trump’s call to arms was a “pointed message” to those who were “dragging their feet” on passing the CLARITY Act. 

Coinbase (COIN) CEO Brian Armstrong reportedly visited the White House on Wednesday after President Donald Trump lashed out at banks for holding the CLARITY Act “hostage.”

A group from the cryptocurrency exchange, which included Armstrong, went to the White House, according to journalist Eleanor Terrett. It is not confirmed whether the Coinbase CEO met directly with Trump. The report comes after the President said that banks were “undermining” America’s goal to become the “crypto capital of the world” and that moving forward with the CLARITY Act was the next key step.

The White House Crypto Council Executive Director, Patrick Witt, had set a deadline of March 1 for both sides of the table, the crypto industry and banks, to finalize a deal that made both sides happy. However, no such agreement has been reached yet.

COIN’s stock fell 1.13% in overnight trade following a dip of 1.55% in the regular session as U.S.-Iran tensions continued to rattle the stock market. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits around the cryptocurrency exchange fell to ‘bearish’ from ‘neutral’ territory over the past day. 

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse Supports Trump’s Push

Ripple (XRP) CEO Brad Garlinghouse said Trump’s call to arms was a “pointed message” to those who were “dragging their feet” on passing the CLARITY Act. “This is, and always has been, about what’s in the best interest of the American people,” he wrote in a post on X.

However, not everyone agrees. According to Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson, the bill lacks support for developers, shifts the balance of power in favour of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and could “destroy” the future of the U.S. cryptocurrency industry. He has been a strong advocate against rushing the CLARITY Act, even as Armstrong and Garlinghouse have been advocating for quick passage.

The overall cryptocurrency market remained flat on Tuesday night, trying to keep above the $2.4 trillion mark. Bitcoin (BTC) edged 0.5% higher in the last 24 hours to around $68,500. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around the apex cryptocurrency fell to ‘bullish’ from ‘extremely bullish’ territory over the past day.

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