Digital Dollar Project Executive To Head New York State Financial Services

The New York State Senate confirmed Tuesday that ex-fed official and a CBDC project executive Adrienne Harris to head the Wall Street regulator.

Wider Crypto Adoption?

Harris will serve as the Superintendent of the Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), the top financial regulator in the state government. Her arrival would probably trigger more study on the possible digital dollar in the state.

This is because her onboarding comes amidst the state’s active participation in embracing cryptocurrencies and new techs. New York City mayor Eric Adams announced last week that his first paycheck will be automatically converted to Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Harris has served as an economic policy advisor under the Obama administration, where she advanced her views on the government’s hands-off approach to regulatory policy. She is also a professor of practice at the University of Michigan.

Adrienne Harris has a long history of being a cheerleader for Wall Street, representing financial firms and elite law firms such as Sullivan & Cromwell.

Harris held over a dozen of positions in various fintech companies. One of which was the scandal-plagued LendingClub, which was busted by the Federal Trade Commission last year, for duping customers about hidden fees.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul first nominated Harris to the post in August 2021, which followed a number of oppositions from left-wing activists and influential lawmakers.

Congratulations to Adrienne Harris, @DHSESCommish, & @DrChinazoOASAS on being confirmed by the Senate as Commissioners for @NYDFS, @NYSDHSES, & @NYSOASAS.

I look forward to continue working with these experienced, results-driven leaders on behalf of the people of our state.

— Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) January 25, 2022

Digital Dollar Drive

The NYDFS overseas over 3000 financial institutions, controlling more than $8 trillion in assets. The department is also responsible for chartering banks, licensing cryptocurrencies and regulating insurance companies and mortgages, among others.

Harris joined the digital dollar project’s executive board in May 2021, at a time when the Federal Reserve started researching CBDC’s pros and cons.

She stressed that privacy guarantees to be an essential part of a successful digital dollar. “If it is based on a token – a digital representation of money – it could be as untraceable as cash,” she noted.

Adrienne Harris headed the distributed ledger technology (DLT) and fintech taskforces for the White House under Obama’s rule, in a drive that the government could help fintech innovators by providing clear regulation and engagement.

The crypto adoption in NYC has been growing such as NYC Coin, and the recent appointment of Harris, given her stack of crypto and CBDC experiences, could draw the attention of more people towards crypto.