Grayscale is minimizing the impact of the Democratic landslide in the U.S. midterm elections, asserting that the future of cryptocurrency relies less on Washington politics and more on international demand and institutional adoption.
Following Tuesday’s vote, the crypto asset management firm informed CoinDesk that the sector’s trajectory reaches beyond any specific political administration or congressional term, even though Democratic triumphs in both the House and Senate could complicate President Donald Trump’s legislative goals for crypto.
Zach Pandl, the firm’s head of research, shared in emailed remarks that while the GENIUS Act marked a significant milestone for stablecoins, the broader push toward regulatory certainty and institutional integration of digital assets rests on much deeper roots than the initiatives of the previous Congress.
This statement followed a pre-election research report by Pandl estimating that 80% to 85% of worldwide cryptocurrency transactions happen outside the United States. To illustrate demand past U.S. borders, Grayscale highlighted the increasing utilization of dollar-linked stablecoins across South America and Southeast Asia.
BlackRock, the premier asset management firm globally, similarly minimized how the electoral outcome might influence its crypto operations.
Speaking prior to the election results at the ETF Investor Forum located in New York on Tuesday, Robert Mitchnick, who leads digital assets for the firm, responded when asked if the outcome would impact BlackRock’s investment flows or product releases by saying that honestly, it would not really do so.
Mitchnick maintained that ether and bitcoin already possess a large portion of the regulatory clarity needed for financial vehicles, despite overarching crypto bills remaining stalled in Congress.
He noted that increasing adoption and driving practical, value-adding use cases transforms the asset class into a bipartisan concern.
This optimistic outlook stands in contrast to the diminishing prospects for the sector in Washington. The CLARITY Act, a comprehensive initiative designed to set federal guidelines for digital assets, failed to progress last September even while Republicans held majorities in both chambers. With Democrats preparing to assume control in January, certain industry leaders now feel the legislation has minimal viability in its current structure.
Conversely, alternative voices spot an opportunity for a revised bipartisan compromise. More than 70 House Democrats previously backed the proposal, although disagreements persist regarding stablecoin rewards, consumer safeguards, and President Donald Trump’s digital asset holdings.
A global industry
Grayscale contends, however, that American legislation represents merely one variable fueling the industry’s expansion.
Pandl stated in his October 28 research note that elections may influence crypto marginally, similar to other asset classes, but because the digital asset sector is global, bipartisan, and increasingly institutionalized, it will continue advancing regardless of the U.S. midterm results.
He argued that worldwide desire for alternative payment methods and alternatives to fiat currencies will endure, while foreign regulators continue shaping frameworks for digital assets.
His calculation regarding the U.S. portion of worldwide crypto activity synthesizes fourteen distinct metrics, encompassing mining, ownership, and trading volume. These metrics yield a median of 16% and an average U.S. share of 19%, though certain indicators gauge North America as a whole instead of exclusively the United States, with Grayscale characterizing the figures as illustrative.
Additionally, Pandl pointed out that digital asset enthusiasm transcends party divisions, observing that the GENIUS Act regulating stablecoins successfully cleared Congress via bipartisan backing.
A survey conducted in February 2024 by the Pew Research Center showed that 18% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents had utilized, traded, or invested in cryptocurrency, contrasted with 17% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents—proportions defined by Pew as statistically indistinguishable.
Furthermore, he noted that federal debt is projected to expand regardless of which political party dominates Congress, thereby driving investors toward alternative value stores like cryptocurrencies.
Pandl also highlighted the rollout of tokenized investment funds by JPMorgan, Franklin Templeton, and BlackRock, alongside stablecoin infrastructure expansions by Stripe, Fiserv, Mastercard, and Visa, as indicators that digital assets are becoming deeply integrated into traditional finance.
Nonetheless, rising adoption does not shield token values from broader economic conditions.
Pandl mentioned earlier in the year via emailed comments to CoinDesk that digital assets beyond Bitcoin remain vulnerable to shifts in macroeconomic market conditions, viewing this sensitivity as evidence of integration into the broader financial architecture.
Originally published at https://www.coindesk.com/business/2026/11/04/crypto-s-washington-hopes-fade-but-grayscale-and-blackrock-see-growth-ahead.
