Jerry Brito

Brito earned a B.A. in political science at Florida International University. The author biography in his published scholarly article identifies 1999 as his graduation year.⁠[3]

According to his personal career retrospective, Brito began his Washington career at the Cato Institute in 1999. He subsequently pursued legal education.⁠[4]

Brito received his J.D. from George Mason University School of Law in 2005. He subsequently founded and directed the Technology Policy Program at the Mercatus Center, researching telecommunications, the internet, copyright and regulatory processes until moving to Coin Center in 2014.⁠[3][4][5]

In a 2019 interview, Brito recalled encountering Bitcoin and beginning to examine its regulatory implications in 2011. His work then focused on explaining the technology to policymakers and examining the relationship between existing laws and the new payment network.⁠[6]

Written testimony and a biography published by the House of Representatives identified Brito as a Mercatus Center senior research fellow, director of its Technology Policy Program and an adjunct professor at George Mason University School of Law. The biography also recorded that he created the federal regulatory research tool OpenRegs and co-created the government accountability website Stimulus Watch.⁠[7]

Brito co-authored Regulation: A Primer with Susan Dudley and edited Copyright Unbalanced: From Incentive to Excess. Mercatus lists the relevant editions of both books in 2012, identifying Regulation: A Primer as a second edition.⁠[5]

As a Mercatus Center researcher, Brito testified before the US Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs about virtual currencies’ risks and potential. He advocated addressing illicit-use risks while preserving room for technological experimentation and clarifying how existing regulatory systems apply.⁠[8]

Brito co-founded Coin Center and became executive director, focusing on public policy for open blockchain networks. The organization’s 2017 third-anniversary retrospective places its establishment in September 2014; his personal website records that he led it through 2024.⁠[9][4]

At the launch of Coin Center’s website, Brito described it as an education and research organization focused on blockchain technology, representing neither a single company nor a particular currency. He outlined work with Congress and regulators, policy research and participation in public consultations, seeking to reduce inappropriate regulation’s effects on innovation through technical explanations and practical proposals.⁠[10]

In remarks at Coin Center’s annual dinner, Brito argued that policy problems sometimes originate in technological misunderstandings, making distinctions between software providers, miners and custodians important. He also emphasized that education must be accompanied by research into specific policies and legislative language, followed by engagement with legislators. The remarks were published on the organization’s website on May 9.⁠[11][4]

Mercatus published the second edition of Bitcoin: A Primer for Policymakers, co-authored by Brito and Andrea Castillo. Its description explains that the edition updates coverage of Bitcoin and blockchain applications, law and regulation, and policy recommendations, including the potential effects of premature restrictions on new technology.⁠[12]

Brito and Peter Van Valkenburgh published version 2.0 of State Digital Currency Principles and Framework, addressing licensing, control of customer assets, consumer protection and support for startups. The report supplied examples of key provisions rather than a complete model bill, arguing that software developers who do not control customer funds should not be treated as custodial intermediaries.⁠[13]

In The Case for Electronic Cash, Brito argued for preserving people’s ability to transact privately and directly as payments become digital. He described that ability as important to privacy and personal autonomy while acknowledging that both cash and electronic cash can be misused. His position sought coexistence between privacy tools and enforcement against unlawful activity.⁠[14][15]

In episode 296 of Epicenter, Brito discussed electronic cash, Facebook’s then-proposed Libra and FinCEN guidance. He argued that regulatory treatment should distinguish who issues assets, manages reserves and controls funds, rather than conflating open networks with centralized issuers.⁠[16][6]

When a host characterized the discussion as concluding that Libra was a security, Brito expressly clarified that he was raising unresolved questions, not reaching a definitive conclusion. The program published its complete transcript on July 19.⁠[6]

Brito co-hosts Worker & Parasite with Stably, discussing individual books in philosophy, history, politics and fiction. His website describes it as a fortnightly podcast. The archive dates its first episode to September 15, 2020, covering Robert Kagan’s The Jungle Grows Back.⁠[17]

Brito and Van Valkenburgh co-authored an article opposing the Treasury’s 15-day comment period for proposed cryptocurrency transaction-record rules and criticizing requirements to identify certain counterparties’ names and addresses. They distinguished cash-like large-transaction reporting from requirements specific to cryptocurrency, advocated technological neutrality and encouraged participation in the formal comment process.⁠[18]

Brito and Van Valkenburgh announced that Coin Center and other plaintiffs were suing the US Treasury to challenge sanctions targeting Tornado Cash. Their article set out the plaintiffs’ arguments about statutory authority, administrative procedure and rights of private donation and association. Brito co-authored the announcement, which identified other plaintiffs including Patrick O’Sullivan, David HoffmanDavid HoffmanDavid Hoffman is a co-owner and podcast co-host of the American crypto media outlet Bankless, which he runs together with Ryan Sean Adams; the two also co-founded the venture capital fund Bankless Ventures.Open the full entry and an anonymous aid-organization operator.⁠[19]

Brito criticized the proposed CANSEE bill, arguing that its definitions of providing an application and controlling a protocol were broad enough to impose financial-institution obligations on people who merely publish open-source software. While acknowledging the objectives of combating money laundering and sanctions evasion, he argued for distinguishing actual control of services from decentralized-software development and raised free-expression concerns.⁠[20]

Responding to a stablecoin bill introduced by Senators Lummis and Gillibrand, Brito argued for distinguishing financial products with issuers and commitments from software protocols without centralized issuers. He opposed a blanket ban on so-called algorithmic payment stablecoins, warning that it could restrict innovation and publication of code, and urged revisions. His article also acknowledged a rationale for appropriate securities regulation of centralized products.⁠[21]

Brito announced that he would step down as executive director at the end of 2024 and that Robin WeismanRobin WeismanRobin Weisman, also known as Robin Mahler Weisman, is a lawyer working on financial-market and cryptocurrency policy and a co-founder and board member of Coin Center. She previously served as Nasdaq’s director of government relations and Coin Center’s senior policy counsel.Open the full entry would also leave her daily policy role. Both would remain on the board as advisers. Peter Van Valkenburgh would become executive director on January 1, 2025. Coin Center’s current board listing continues to include Brito.⁠[22][23]

After Brito had stepped down as executive director, the US Treasury removed economic sanctions against Tornado Cash while stating that it would continue using its authorities against malicious cyber actors and North Korea-related illicit activity. The administrative decision was separate from criminal proceedings against individual developers.⁠[24][25]

In Coin Center’s case, the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit granted the parties’ joint motion to vacate the lower-court judgment and remand with instructions to dismiss. The order was document 65-2 in case 23-13698. This ended Coin Center’s litigation over that sanctions authority, without establishing a general ruling in Brito’s or Coin Center’s favor on every legal issue involving privacy tools.⁠[26][25]

The official archive lists episode 113, Buddha’s Little Finger, dated September 25, 2026, with a 50-minute duration. It covers Victor Pelevin’s novel; the episode description says the hosts discussed its postmodern Russian narrative across different periods and levels of reality.⁠[17]

After Brito’s departure as executive director, FinCEN announced withdrawal of its 2020 proposal on unhosted-wallet transaction records and reporting and its 2023 proposal on convertible virtual currency mixing. Brito and Van Valkenburgh had jointly opposed the former proposal in 2020. The withdrawals concerned those two proposed rules; they did not remove existing anti-money-laundering obligations.⁠[27][18][28]

Cato Institute: Official website: https://www.cato.org/ (opens in a new window).⁠[29]

Mercatus Center: Official website: https://www.mercatus.org/ (opens in a new window).⁠[30]

Coin Center: Official website: https://coincenter.org/ (opens in a new window).⁠[31]

George Mason University School of Law: Official website: https://www.law.gmu.edu/ (opens in a new window).⁠[32]

Jerry Brito: Official website: https://jerrybrito.com/ (opens in a new window).⁠[2]

Worker & Parasite: Official website: https://jerrybrito.com/podcast (opens in a new window).⁠[2]

Jerry Brito X: Official account: https://x.com/jerrybrito (opens in a new window).⁠[2]