New York City could attract more cryptocurrency and financial technology (FinTech) companies to the Big Apple after Tusk Strategies announced the launch of a new practice focusing on the Crypto + FinTech sectors to solve major regulatory and public affairs challenges.
Eric Soufer, a Tusk veteran who served as a top adviser to two New York Attorneys General, the New York State Assembly Speaker and Senate Majority Leader, and is leading the new practice, said New York City already has several cryptos and finTech companies and is poised to land more in these emerging business sectors.
“We’re talking about an industry that some analysts predict could be worth up to a trillion dollars in the next three years, and New York has an opportunity to capture the majority of that potentially, if we’re smart about the way that we attract these businesses, recruit new talent and the way that we regulate them,” said Soufer.
Soufer noted that while New York City currently has an edge with attracting the emerging financial sector industries, states like Texas and Florida are trying to eat the city’s lunch by saying, ‘you can come here and we’re not going to tell you what to do.’ But that only works so well, because if you try to attract only the kind of cowboys and industry that never want to talk to a regulator, you’re going to get some pretty weak players, he said.
“There’s a reason why all the world’s biggest banks and big tech companies are based or have a second headquarters in New York. It’s because you’ve got talent here. And you’ve got really important professional networks here. And you’ve got people who understand that there’s long-term value to be had in having a good, well-regulated sector. It builds trust between the private sector and the government and it builds trust with consumers, who are the people you ultimately need,” said Soufer.
Soufer warned, however, that while New York is in the pole position, states like Florida and Texas are nipping at the state and city’s heels. “If we don’t organize as an industry fast and smart, we can tend to lose that edge,” he said.
To that end, the practice will create and execute strategies for Crypto and FinTech clients as they navigate complex regulatory and public affairs challenges in New York and across the country.
Jackie Zupsic, head of the firm’s Los Angeles office, will lead the group’s communications, marketing and public relations efforts. She brings deep experience in the blockchain industry and success running aggressive strategic media and marketing campaigns nationally and globally. Prior to joining Tusk, Zupsic led crisis communications and strategic financial communications for a wide variety of start-ups and well-established corporations.
Among the industry leaders that Tusk Strategy has advised in recent years include Paxos, Circle, eToro, Tezos, Apex Crypto, Dibbs, Melio, and MoneyLion.
