Coin Center’s 2026 Policy Priorities: Protecting Non‑custodial Crypto, Privacy, and Tax Reform
Coin Center today outlined its top policy priorities for 2026, focused on defending non‑custodial crypto users and developers, promoting privacy‑preserving compliance, and pushing tax and market‑structure reforms. Key proposals include passing the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (BRCA) to prevent DOJ prosecutions of non‑custodial software developers; the Keep Your Coins Act (KYCA) to prohibit federal bans or regulation of self‑custody; and six tax code changes to reduce administrative burdens (a de minimis exemption for small crypto transactions, excluding crypto from wash‑sale rules, an optional simplified mark‑to‑market for individuals, taxing mining/validation rewards only at disposal, repealing 6050I sender reporting for peer‑to‑peer transfers over $10,000, and easing appraisal rules for crypto charitable donations). Coin Center calls for clear statutory division between SEC and CFTC authority so open‑consensus tokens aren’t treated as securities, and proposes adopting privacy‑preserving KYC/AML tools (digital credentials and zero‑knowledge proofs) through a planned John Hancock Project. The organization supports litigation such as Lewellyn v. Garland to secure developer protections and urges Congress to include these reforms in market‑structure legislation. Primary focus areas for traders: legal certainty for non‑custodial protocols, reduced tax and reporting friction, and regulatory clarity that could affect token classifications and on‑chain transaction privacy.
Neutral
The policy proposals aim to reduce legal and tax friction for non‑custodial crypto use and to clarify token regulatory status — outcomes that generally support crypto adoption and innovation over the medium to long term. Passing BRCA or KYCA and tax relief measures would be bullish by lowering developer and user risk, reducing compliance costs, and preserving on‑chain activity. However, these outcomes depend on legislation passage; absent congressional action, DOJ prosecutions and regulatory uncertainty could continue, which would be negative. The push for privacy‑preserving AML tools could be viewed mixed: better privacy protections may increase on‑chain activity (bullish), but regulators could respond with stricter rules during transition (bearish). Overall this is neutral because the announcements signal constructive advocacy but do not themselves change legal or market conditions. Short term: limited market reaction expected — possible token‑specific volatility if news reshapes expectations about pending bills or court cases. Long term: if enacted, reforms would likely be bullish for native crypto liquidity, developer activity, and self‑custody adoption; if blocked, regulatory risk could suppress innovation and weigh on prices.