National Cryptocurrency Association

On March 5, 2025, the National Cryptocurrency Association was launched in Miami with the stated aim of improving crypto literacy and encouraging safe adoption in the United States, together with a consumer education platform.⁠[1][2]

The organization was founded by RippleRippleRipple is an American fintech company, legally named Ripple Labs Inc., that provides banks, payment providers, funds, and businesses with blockchain- and digital asset-based cross-border payments, digital asset custody, a U.S. dollar stablecoin, prime brokerage, and corporate treasury management services. Its business makes extensive use of the public XRP Ledger blockchain and its native token XRP, but neither is the same as the company itself; from 2020 to 2025, the company fought a nearly five-year legal battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over whether its XRP sales were unregistered securities offerings.Open the full entry, which funded it with a two-year, $50 million grant. Ripple chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty became NCA president while remaining Ripple’s chief legal officer.⁠[2]

The NCA is registered as a 501(c)(4) organization; such organizations are not required to publicly disclose their donors. The NCA said it is not beholden to any one company and is not a political or lobbying organization. Alderoty said: “NCA is not a political organization — it's open to all, not limited to a specific project or protocol.”⁠[2]

In the launch announcement, Ripple chief executive Brad Garlinghouse said: “The opportunity for crypto - especially in the US - is now stronger than ever.”⁠[1]

The NCA planned video tutorials, written explainers and how-to guides, backed by a nationwide advertising campaign, and was exploring national campaigns, local events, crypto coursework and guidance and support services.⁠[2]

At launch the NCA released preliminary results of an online survey of 10,000 U.S. crypto holders conducted by The Harris Poll from January 22 to February 3, 2025: about one in five U.S. adults use crypto, 76% of users said it had positively affected their lives, and 81% of holders wanted to learn more about crypto’s future.⁠[1]

On April 2, 2025, the NCA published the 2025 State of the Crypto Holders Report with The Harris Poll, estimating that 55 million U.S. adults use crypto. The report found that 67% of holders were under 45, 31% were women and 40% held less than $5,000 in digital assets; 64% supported government regulation and 67% worried that regulation could hinder innovation.⁠[3]

Alderoty said at the release: “We know that millions of real individuals are using crypto.”⁠[3]

On July 22, 2025, the NCA released the 2025 Crypto Confidence Pulse, based on a Harris Poll survey of 2,000 Americans who did not hold crypto, conducted May 22–30: nearly 90% said they lacked knowledge about buying, using or trading crypto, 49% named not understanding how it works as the biggest barrier, and only 18% said they were likely to acquire crypto in 2025.⁠[4]

The NCA also launched a video series, “Meet the Crypto Holders,” addressing common questions and myths about crypto. Alderoty said: “Crypto's biggest barrier is comprehension.”⁠[4]

On August 13, 2025, the NCA announced its inaugural advisory board, comprising former Commodity Futures Trading CommissionCommodity Futures Trading CommissionThe U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is an independent federal agency created by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Act of 1974 and operating since 1975 to regulate futures, options and swaps markets; it has treated bitcoin and other virtual currencies as commodities since 2015 and has been chaired since December 22, 2025 by Michael Selig.Open the full entry chairman Chris Giancarlo, Alliance for Innovative Regulation co-founder and chief executive Jo Ann Barefoot, and Duke University Fuqua School of Business finance professor Campbell Harvey.⁠[5]

The advisory board later listed on the NCA’s About page also includes May Zabaneh, vice president and general manager of crypto at PayPalPayPalPayPal Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: PYPL) is an American digital payments company that operates payment brands including PayPal, Venmo, Braintree, and Xoom, providing online and in-store payments, money transfers, and consumer credit to consumers and merchants worldwide.Open the full entry.⁠[6]

On December 3, 2025, the NCA, CoinbaseCoinbaseCoinbase is a U.S. operator of crypto asset trading platforms, founded in 2012 by Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam, whose listed parent is Coinbase Global, Inc.; it went public through a direct listing on Nasdaq (ticker COIN) in April 2021 and joined the S&P 500 in May 2025. It provides crypto trading, custody, staking, and stablecoin-related services, launched USDC with Circle, develops the Ethereum layer-2 network Base, and acquired the crypto options exchange Deribit in 2025; its venture investing operates as Coinbase Ventures.Open the full entry and the nonprofit Operation HOPE announced a partnership to create and distribute free crypto literacy resources for underserved U.S. communities. The NCA is developing written and video explainers, interactive animated lessons and quizzes, and a risk-free simulator, with vendor-agnostic and non-promotional materials; Coinbase supports development and scaling, and Operation HOPE serves as the primary community distribution channel through more than 200 HOPE Inside locations.⁠[7]

Alderoty said in the announcement: “We're turning crypto curiosity into confidence.”⁠[7]

During SXSW in Austin, Texas, in March 2026, the NCA returned with a program that included mentor sessions on March 12, a “Crypto Curious Meet Up” on March 13, a “Crypto Confessions Booth” from March 13 to 15, and a “Crypto Convergence” panel on March 15. Panelists included NCA vice president of external affairs Ali Tager, PayPal senior director of product Smitha Purohit and crypto market strategist Karin Kusano.⁠[8]

The NCA’s About page describes its mission as helping Americans understand and use crypto with confidence and lists Stu Alderoty as president. Its ongoing programs include research reports, profiles of crypto holders, educational resources and the weekly podcast Crypto, Explained.⁠[6][8]

The president’s letter on the About page states that more than 67 million American adults own cryptocurrency, about one in four, up from about one in five a year earlier.⁠[6]

National Cryptocurrency Association: Official website: https://nca.org/ (opens in a new window).⁠[9]

X: Public account: https://x.com/NatCryptoAssoc (opens in a new window).⁠[9]

LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: Public profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/natcryptoassoc/ (opens in a new window).⁠[9]

YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: Public channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7_uritgUHlXQyVC3HKqJOQ (opens in a new window).⁠[9]