Blanche’s promotion has many implications, including some for crypto. The former federal prosecutor instigated a number of pro-industry reforms at the Department of Justice last year, and is a crypto investor himself.
But under his and Bondi’s leadership, U.S. attorneys have also continued to aggressively pursue cases against crypto software developers—a development that has left some privacy and decentralization advocates worried.
“The prior Administration used the Justice Department to pursue a reckless strategy of regulation by prosecution, which was ill conceived and poorly executed,” Blanche said at the time.
It remains to be seen whether the DOJ’s crypto policies will change with Blanche’s move to the top of the department’s leadership. But those policies may not have been tied solely to the now-ousted Bondi. In December, in response to a question from Decrypt, President Trump said he would “look at” pardons for the crypto software developers convicted by his Justice Department. No such pardons have since materialized.
