Task Force on FinTech, Crypto, and National Security

The CNAS Task Force on FinTech, Crypto, and National Security will develop pragmatic and innovative national security policy recommendations for the rapidly evolving ecosystem of financial technologies, crypto, digital assets, and decentralized finance (DeFi). As these technologies have advanced, governments around the global have responded in sharply different ways, ranging from adoption of cryptocurrency as legal tender to banning it entirely. U.S. policy is in its nascent stages, with the private sector leading the technology’s development against a backdrop of an uncertain regulatory future. The United States must make a choice about whether it seeks to lead the world in the responsible development of digital assets or whether it will cede this space to foreign competitors.

The CNAS Task Force will define U.S. strategic interests and opportunities in pursuing leadership of this technology area, as well as advance the policy conversation for managing its unique risks. The Task Force will bring together a diverse group of technology and policy experts from the private sector, public sector, and academia for this year-long research effort. Drawing from insights from the Task Force, the CNAS research team will publish a series of policy briefs on national security policy for the crypto and digital assets ecosystem. Consistent with its strict policy of intellectual independence, CNAS will retain full editorial control over the research agenda and publications.

The CNAS Task Force will be co-chaired by Sigal Mandelker, former Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence and currently at Ribbit Capital, and Dr. Chris Brummer, Director of Georgetown University’s Institute of International Economic Law and a leading academic on financial technologies. Emily Kilcrease, Senior Fellow and Director of the CNAS Energy, Economics, and Security Program, will coordinate the research.

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