andreessen horowitz
Bulletins

Andreessen Horowitz wants the government to appoint a 'Web3 czar'

A "crypto czar" would be too narrow a role, and a16z wants someone broadly focused on decentralized technology.

The U.S. Capitol building, seen at night.

The firm is also arguing for a path to making DAOs legal and that Web3 should be used for greater tax compliance.

Photo: Andy Feliciotti/Unsplash

While there's been talk about a "White House crypto czar," venture firm Andreessen Horowitz would like for the person to focus on more than just cryptocurrencies. In a new policy outline on Web3, a16z said it "supported" having a senior official dedicated to the area, but the firm hoped that the position would "encompass the more expansive landscape of web3 and decentralized technology in addition to cryptocurrencies." Beyond having someone in the White House focused on the issue, it also thinks more support should be given to Congress to better understand technology. "We think it's time to appoint a senior official to serve as the Administration's web3 czar and allocate additional resources to facilitate technology analysis by Congress," a16z's Global Head of Policy Tomicah Tillemann said in a tweet.

The appointment of a "Web3 czar" was just one part of a16z's policy push around decentralized technology. The firm is also arguing for a path to making DAOs legal and that Web3 should be used for greater tax compliance "because we believe it will help legitimize the industry and incentivize the U.S. government to encourage further innovation in this space."

The venture firm isn't the only one calling on government to invest more resources into understanding cryptocurrencies and decentralized technology. In October, the WSJ reported that Coinbase wanted Congress to prevent the SEC from regulating crypto and instead create a new body to oversee it.

Biz Carson

Biz Carson ( @bizcarson) is a San Francisco-based reporter at Protocol, covering Silicon Valley with a focus on startups and venture capital. Previously, she reported for Forbes and was co-editor of Forbes Next Billion-Dollar Startups list. Before that, she worked for Business Insider, Gigaom, and Wired and started her career as a newspaper designer for Gannett.

venture capitalcryptoweb3andreessen horowitz
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