US Lawmakers to Hold Crypto Roundtable with Top Executives on Oct. 22

Highlights:

• Senate Democrats will organize a roundtable on Wednesday to discuss stalled crypto legislation and DeFi.
• Top crypto executives from multiple sectors will meet to advise lawmakers on regulations.
• Industry groups urge clear rules after a leaked DeFi proposal raised widespread concerns.

In an effort to strengthen ties between U.S. policymakers and the crypto industry, Senate Democrats will hold a private roundtable on October 22. According to journalist Eleanor Terrett, the upcoming roundtable will focus on stalled digital asset legislation and the future of decentralized finance (DeFi) regulation. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) will host a crypto roundtable with major industry leaders from Coinbase, Ripple, Chainlink, and Uniswap.

Top Leaders to Join Senate Democrats’ Crypto Roundtable on Key Regulations

The meeting will bring together several top crypto figures, including Coinbase’s Brian Armstrong, Chainlink’s Sergey Nazarov, and Galaxy Digital’s Mike Novogratz. Other expected participants include Kraken’s David Ripley, Uniswap’s Hayden Adams, and Ripple’s legal head Stuart Alderoty. Also joining are Circle’s Dante Disparte, Jito’s Rebecca Rettig, a16z’s Miles Jennings, and Solana Policy Institute’s Kristin Smith. Journalist Eleanor Terrett mentioned that more names could still be added to the list.

Each company represents a different part of crypto, like exchanges, DeFi, stablecoins, and infrastructure. It shows ongoing efforts by Democratic lawmakers to stay connected with crypto industry leaders. Sen. Gillibrand, who co-authored the bipartisan Responsible Financial Innovation Act with Sen. Cynthia Lummis, has consistently pushed for clear and fair regulations for digital asset companies. The roundtable will cover key crypto issues, including clear market rules, DeFi oversight, stablecoin standards, and tax compliance. 

🚨SCOOP: These crypto C-suites are expected to attend a roundtable with pro-crypto Senate Democrats on Wednesday to discuss market structure legislation and the path forward:

📌Coinbase CEO @brian_armstrong
📌Chainlink CEO @SergeyNazarov
📌Galaxy CEO @novogratz
📌Kraken CEO…

— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) October 20, 2025

The roundtable is important for crypto, as many ETF approvals are delayed. The U.S. government shutdown is in its fourth week, and the SEC missed decisions on Litecoin, Solana, and XRP ETFs. The delays and shutdown hurt investor confidence. Many crypto positions were liquidated, and the Crypto Fear & Greed Index fell from greed to extreme fear in just one week. Meanwhile, crypto ETF issuers are updating applications to meet the SEC’s new Generic Listing Standards.

Leaked DeFi Proposal Sparks Industry Concerns

The meeting aims to restart crypto legislation after talks with Republicans failed in October. The meeting followed a leaked six-page Democratic proposal on DeFi, which faced criticism from both Republicans and the crypto community for potentially restricting decentralized finance and wallets in the U.S. Industry groups like the Digital Chamber of Commerce and Blockchain Association warned about its risks. More than 20 crypto firms, including Chainlink, VanEck, and Binance.US, signed a letter calling for clear rules to protect innovation.

🚨SCOOP: A dust-up between Senate Democrats and Republicans over a leaked DeFi regulation proposal from Democrats is unfolding behind the scenes, stalling bipartisan market structure talks and potentially pushing a markup date even further out. More to come in tomorrow’s…

— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) October 9, 2025

Lawmakers are under pressure to provide guidance and solutions before the 2025 legislative session ends. TD Cowen analysts said U.S. lawmakers are slow on crypto market structure laws. This delay could push the bill past the midterm elections. The Genius Act passed fast, but talks on bigger crypto rules are still slow. Senate Republicans suggested splitting power between the SEC and CFTC and defining which cryptocurrencies are not securities.