MARA Chairman and CEO Fred Thiel delivered the opening keynote at Bitcoin Policy Institute’s Bitcoin Policy Summit 2025 in Washington, DC on June 25, 2025.

Global Leaders Are Making Strides in Their Understanding of Bitcoin

Bitcoin has come a long way since this gathering first began and so has Washington. Just a few years ago, serious conversations about Bitcoin's role in energy, national security, or the financial system were fringe at best. Today, they're happening at the White House, in the halls of Congress, at federal agencies, in state capitals across the country, and among sovereigns around the world. Policymakers are starting to see what so many of us have long believed: that Bitcoin is not just another asset class or speculative trend; it's a breakthrough in monetary technology. It's a tool for freedom and it's a catalyst for American innovation and energy resilience.

MARA Affirms Its Continued Support for BPI

That's why MARA is honored to once again be the title sponsor for this year's Policy Summit. What began as a gathering of early advocates has grown into something far greater: a movement with momentum, one that remains focused on how to responsibly integrate Bitcoin into the American system for the benefit of the American people. We continue to invest in the Bitcoin Policy Institute because we believe in their mission and because we believe in the power of this community to drive real change through research, through dialogue, and through principled engagement with our elected officials.

Bitcoin Mining Strengthens the Grid & National Security

As this event continues to grow, my hope is that it also continues to mature and that it becomes a platform where we can make an important and often overlooked distinction: Bitcoin is not like any other digital or cryptocurrency. It is a network with a protocol, a globally relevant asset class, and most importantly, an ideology. Bitcoin is decentralized, it's open-sourced, it's transparent, and it doesn't require trust in any intermediary. And its incentives reward energy efficiency, innovation, and long-term thinking. That's why Bitcoin mining is increasingly being seen for what it truly is: a technology that stabilizes grids, monetizes stranded energy, and attracts capital to renewable and rural infrastructure. In short, Bitcoin mining strengthens America's energy future and national security while securing and validating the Bitcoin network and transactions.

US Policy Must Consider Bitcoin Uniquely

Without mining, there is no Bitcoin. Looking ahead, I believe we have an opportunity, and more importantly, a responsibility to help policymakers understand that this industry can be a strategic asset for the United States. We can lead the world in digital energy innovation, we can create jobs, build infrastructure, and support national security, but only if we get the policy right. That means clarity, that means fairness, and above all, that means treating Bitcoin as the unique technology that it is.

Thank you again BPI for your leadership and thank all of you here today for your commitment to advancing the future of Bitcoin in America. Let's keep building.