Chamath Palihapitiya says “crypto is dead in America”

• Chamath Palihapitiya, a top tech investor and crypto bull, says regulators have killed crypto in the United States.
• He notes that regulators have their guns trained at crypto, highlighting regulatory uncertainty and the crackdown on crypto companies. 
• Palihapitiya said in 2021 that Bitcoin had replaced gold, predicting that BTC would rise to $200,000.

Tech billionaire Chamath Palihapitiya, a long time bitcoin bull who once predicted the price of the flagship cryptocurrency will rise to $200,000, saying BTC had replaced gold, has commented on the state of the crypto industry in the United States.

He says the regulatory uncertainty has killed the crypto innovation in the country.

Crypto dead in the US thanks to regulators

In comments shared via an episode on the All-In podcast, Palihapitiya warned that “crypto is dead in America.” 

The venture investor’s remarks came a few days after the crypto industry largely criticized the overall outlook of the crypto regulation in the US following SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s appearance during a congressional hearing.

According to Palihapitiya, regulators are largely to blame for crypto’s demise in the country, highlighting Gensler’s comments that appeared to connect crypto to Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse. Blaming the recent banking crisis on the crypto sector was the US authorities having their guns firmly pointed at crypto, the investor said.

US regulators have over the past few months tightened their crackdown on crypto, with crypto exchanges Coinbase, Kraken, Bittrex among those targeted.

While Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong recently said the company could relocate if the regulatory environement did not improve, Bittrex plans to wind down its US operations following the SEC charges citing regulatory uncertainty. 

Coinbase also sued the SEC on Monday with the complaint against the agency relating to a rule making petition the exchange filed in July 2022.