The three-week-long US government shutdown is “likely to end sometime this week,” according to a White House economic adviser, potentially reviving crypto regulatory progress.
“I think the Schumer shutdown is likely to end sometime this week,” Hassett told CNBC’s Squawk Box segment on Monday, referring to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, whom Republicans have pointed the finger at for triggering the government shutdown.
“The moderate Democrats will move forward and get us an open government, at which point we could negotiate whatever policies they want to negotiate with regular order,” he added.
If that isn’t successful, the Trump administration may impose “stronger measures” to force the Democrats to cooperate, said Hassett, a crypto advocate who disclosed holdings worth more than $1 million in Coinbase earlier this year.
He is also one of Trump’s top three picks to replace Jerome Powell as the Federal Reserve chair in May 2026.
Government shutdown stalled altcoin ETF momentum
The US government shutdown — which commenced on Oct. 1 — is currently in its 20th day, the third longest in the nation’s history.
Many exchange-traded fund applications for Litecoin (LTC), XRP (XRP) and Solana (SOL) are waiting on a final decision from the US securities regulator, but have been delayed due to the government’s budget standoff.
Other crypto developments are seemingly waiting for an end to the shutdown. US lawmakers met with Strategy’s Michael Saylor and 17 other industry leaders to discuss how Congress can move forward with Trump’s Strategic Bitcoin Reserve in mid-September.
A key talking point in that meeting centered on how the Cynthia Lummis-sponsored BITCOIN Act can facilitate Bitcoin purchases in budget-neutral ways.
Democrats to meet crypto executives this week
However, the government shutdown hasn’t completely stalled regulatory progress, with Democratic Senators reportedly set to host a roundtable with industry leaders from Coinbase, Circle, Ripple and others on Wednesday to discuss how the proposed US crypto market structure bill can be pushed forward.
Related: US Senate confirms Treasury official as government shutdown continues
Despite Hassett’s optimism, Polymarket odds estimate there’s a 71% chance that the shutdown will last longer than 30 days, taking it to at least Oct. 31.
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