Hunter Horsley and Matt Hougan: The Spot Crypto ETF Champions
The two Bitwise executives have worked tirelessly to get crypto exchange-traded funds approved by the SEC, and this year they finally succeeded.
June 2025
Fred Thiel: The Michael Saylor of the Bitcoin Mining Industry
The CEO of MARA Holdings has gone all-in on bitcoin, adding billions of dollars worth of the world’s largest cryptocurrency to MARA’s balance sheet.
Howard Lutnick: Tether’s Big Backer
The CEO of prominent bond broker Cantor Fitzgerald played a major role in validating Tether this year by vouching for its reserves.
Evan Cheng: The Architect of Sui’s Object-Oriented Revolution
Sui is re-thinking what blockchains can be. And this year, many of Wall Street’s largest institutions are taking note.
Eric Semler: Following MicroStrategy’s Lead
The chairman of Semler Scientific underscored that buying bitcoin was not just for digital asset companies.
Cynthia Lummis: Laser-Eyed Lawmaker
The Wyoming senator has been a major crypto supporter since joining Congress in 2021. Now she’s the leading advocate for creating a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.
Matthew Long: The UK’s Crypto Gatekeeper
Under Long, the Financial Conduct Authority has been slow to approve crypto firms operating in the UK. Impending new rules may change that, however.
Patrick McHenry: The Lawmaker Who Built a Foundation for U.S. Crypto Legislation
The outgoing chair of the House Financial Services Committee deserves significant credit for getting the FIT21 market structure bill through the House in 2024.
Balaji Srinivasan: Spreading the Network State
With renewing public institutions on the agenda, the Network State could be an idea whose time has come. If so, Srinivasan will again have been prescient.
Brian Nelson: Leading the Charge Against Tornado Cash
As a U.S. Treasury official, Nelson went after the asset mixing service in a consequential case for the crypto sector that came to a head in 2024.