Trump Nominates Former Coinbase Exec for Key Bank Regulation Role
Brian Brooks previously served as Coinbase's Chief Legal Officer. Now, he may be headed to the OCC.
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On Nov. 17, President Trump announced his intention to nominate former Coinbase CLO Brian Brooks as head of the Office of the Comptroller of Currency (OCC).
Coinbase Arrives in the OCC
Brooks served as Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer between 2018 and 2020. Since May of this year, he has been the acting head of the Office of the Comptroller of Currency, a government branch responsible for chartering and regulating national banks.
If the Senate accepts the nomination, Brooks will serve a five-year term in the OCC after Trump leaves office.
Brooks has already directed the OCC to focus more heavily on cryptocurrency, stating earlier this week that more crypto banks are coming soon.
“Millions of people want [crypto] and use it and value it,” said Brooks. “It’s not my job to tell them they are wrong, it’s my job to tell them to figure out what their risks are and are they managed appropriately and is it a system that people trust.”
In July of this year, the OCC under Brooks allowed U.S. banks to take custody of Bitcoin, a major step forward in crypto adoption.
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