Crypto Coalition of 112 Entities Urges Congress on Developer Safeguards, Citing 7% Drop in U.S. Open-Source Talent

A broad coalition of 112 cryptocurrency organizations, encompassing prominent builders, investors, and trade groups such as Coinbase, a16z crypto, Paradigm, and the Blockchain Association, has sent a letter to the U.S. Congress advocating for robust protections for software developers within upcoming market structure legislation. The joint appeal, spearheaded by figures like Uniswap Labs founder Hayden Adams, was dispatched to the Senate Banking and Agriculture Committees on August 27, 2025. This collective effort underscores a growing concern that regulatory ambiguities are hindering innovation and driving talent away from the United States.

The primary demand of the coalition is the inclusion of explicit safeguards for open-source software developers and non-custodial service providers in any new digital asset market structure bill. Hayden Adams emphasized the urgency of this in a recent social media post, stating, "These protections are absolutely critical for any market structure bill so innovation continues to thrive in the US." The group believes that without clear guidelines, developers face undue legal risks, which directly stifles the creation and deployment of new, decentralized technologies that are foundational to the crypto ecosystem. Protecting non-custodial services is seen as vital to maintaining user autonomy and the decentralized nature of many crypto applications.

A Blockworks report on the letter highlighted a concerning trend: the share of open-source software developers in the U.S. has reportedly fallen from 25% in 2021 to 18% in 2025. This significant 7% decline is directly attributed to the prevailing regulatory uncertainty within the country. The coalition's concerns align with the July 2025 President’s Working Group Report on Digital Asset Markets, which also stressed the imperative of reversing this trend to maintain America's leadership in blockchain technology and foster a competitive environment.

While the coalition welcomed the inclusion of existing legislative proposals like the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act and the Keep Your Coins Act in draft legislation, they called for further clarifications. They also urged for federal preemption to prevent a fragmented regulatory landscape created by a patchwork of differing state laws, which could complicate compliance and hinder nationwide adoption. This unified appeal from a significant portion of the crypto industry signals a critical juncture in the ongoing dialogue between innovators and policymakers regarding the future of digital assets in the U.S. and its global standing in the evolving technological landscape.