- Kristin Smith moves from The Blockchain Association to the Solana Policy Institute
- Solana Policy Institute is a non-partisan non-profit organization to accelerate the broad crypto policy development
- Kristin Smith will take on the role of president of the institute to contribute to the development of DeFi
- Blockchain Association’s board of directors is still looking for a successor
Kristin Smith moves from The Blockchain Association to the Solana Policy Institute, a newly formed non-partisan, non-profit organization to accelerate the development of broad crypto policies from stablecoins to market structure and industry initiatives. Kristin Smith is pleased with the work done at The Blockchain Association, and there is a need for timely policy development for the already large and mature DeFi.
More About Kristin Smith, its role in The Blockchain Association, and Initiatives of The Solana Policy Institute
So, if you are not familiar with Kristin Smith, it is worth noting that he is a very important figure in the crypto industry and beyond. First of all, it is worth mentioning that she has an impressive background in the White House:
- Staff Assistant and later Legislative Correspondent to Sen. Conrad Burns for over 5 years Â
- Then Lobbyist at Alpine Group for about 2 years
- Deputy Chief of Staff to Rep. Denny Rehberg for over 4 years
- Only after that became The Blockchain Association CEO for about 7 years
So, with such experience attached to The Blockchain Association for over 7 years – a lot of work has been done to develop many initiatives and strategies that can be effective for the government and beneficial to the crypto industry.
However, while the work to continue developing this doesn’t end for The Blockchain Association – Kristin Smith has decided to put her efforts into the recently launched Solana Policy Institute. This is a non-partisan, non-profit organization that aims to accelerate the development of crypto policies that are as broad as possible regarding everything from stablecoins to market structure.
Because key regulators already have a much better understanding of Bitcoin and are more prepared to regulate it effectively – the rapid and diverse development of DeFi and the Solana ecosystem, in particular, remains underdeveloped and requires similar, if not much more extensive efforts.
The Blockchain Association has confirmed the departure, and Kristin Smith did a post in their X that pretty comprehensively and positively summarizes previous experiences and upcoming initiatives.
After an incredible journey as CEO of Blockchain Association, I’m stepping down from my role as CEO on May 16. Leading this organization, working alongside brilliant colleagues, members, and friends, and advocating for an industry that I believe is shaping the future has been an…
— Kristin Smith (@KMSmithDC) April 1, 2025
Conclusions
One can rightly congratulate Kristin Smith’s new initiative and thank the team for contributing to the creation of a critical institution for the development of the crypto industry. Now the development, scaling, and application of that expertise further down the line.
This is quite a native path for DeFi adaptation, the decentralized and autonomous creation of expert panels, without which probably even the most progressive nations would be in endless debates or even ban cryptocurrencies.
Stay tuned for updates, be adaptive in the rapidly evolving financial and crypto landscape, and keep your strategy grounded and balanced.