Coinbase appoints former White House staffer as chief policy officer

REUTERS: Coinbase has appointed Faryar Shirzad, a former White House official, as chief policy officer, the cryptocurrency exchange said in a blog post on Monday (May 24).

Shirzad joins the company against the backdrop of increased regulatory scrutiny around digital currencies globally.

He served as deputy National Security Advisor for International Economic Affairs at the White House and was most recently the global co-head of government affairs at Goldman Sachs, where his tenure spanned 15 years.

Previously, he was also the assistant secretary for import administration at the US Department of Commerce.

Last week, Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell said cryptocurrencies pose risks to financial stability. The US Treasury is also backing a proposal that would require cryptocurrency transfers over US$10,000 to be reported to the Internal Revenue Service.

Coinbase, which went public earlier this year, in March named Brett Redfearn, a former director of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, as vice president of capital markets division.

"Coinbase has never shied away from regulation. In fact, we've leaned into it over the past 9 years ...", the company's blog post said. 

Bitcoin, the most popular cryptocurrency, is down more than 40per cent from last month's record high, with a sell-off that was fueled by China's crackdown on crypto.