Over the past several years, the global discourse around Blockchain has been dominated by the United States legislative gridlock, peat war between agencies and intermittent moments of legislative clarity. As the United States continued to fight its internal contradictions, other jurisdictions have tried to fill the void. Switzerland, Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai and Gibraltar positioned themselves as crypto hubs. Still, each of them faced a critical limitation: No one was natural centers of technological innovation worldwide.

Canada, on the other hand, has an often overlooked but unusually strategic position. Not only is it geographically and culturally in line with the United States, but it also shares a relative entrepreneurial heater. More important is that Canada has deep, organic roots in blockchain innovation. Ethereum – arguably the most important programmable blockchain platform that was only for Bitcoin at market value – was devised in Toronto.

William Mougayar is the Toronto-based author of the best-selling book, The Business Blockchain. Consensus 2025 takes place in Toronto 14-16. May.

Blockstream, Core Bitcoin Infrastructure Company, is based in Montreal. It is common to find Canadian engineers, developers and leaders who play key roles in leading American blockchain companies. Thousands more contributing independently as blockchain technologists and software developers.

In addition to this historical significance and talent base, Canada has a critical structural advantage: agility. Where the United States are weighed down by institutional complexity, Canada can be Kvikk.

In the United States, the road to coherent crypto regulation remains tangled in bureaucratic inertia. The legislation switches between parliament and the Senate that often stops or contradicts itself. Agencies such as SEC and CFTC continue to compete for jurisdiction. Even with the appointment of a Crypto Czar in the White House and a CEO, the implementation continues to hang. For all its ambition, the American regulatory machine moves like a supertanker – slowly to turn and be stressed by procedural friction.

Canada, on the other hand, benefits from fewer layers of governments, closer coordination between agencies and a legislative culture that – when sufficiently motivated – can respond with speed and clarity. This structural simplicity provides a rare option: Canada can skip the United States by becoming the first G7 nation to adopt a coherent, innovation-friendly blockchain strategy.

This is how the plan can look like:

• Welcome global blockchain companies. Attract Top-Tier talent and startups with streamlined immigration paths, R & U credits, targeted tax incentives and bold partnerships.
• Create a crypto-friendly tax regime. Modernizes tax policy to support – not punish – use and possession of digital assets. Capital gains treatment, income for income and token issuing rules must be clarified and calibrated to encourage innovation.
• Clarify and streamline regulation. Strong consumer protection and economic integrity remain important, but ambiguity and overreach risk undermine innovation. Canada can offer clear, proportionate and globally respected rules for commitment.
• Mandate Crypto Access in Canadian Banks. Promote institutional adoption by encouraging banks to integrate blockchain systems and enable trouble -free, secure access to regulated crypto platforms, including keeping stablecoins.
• Integrate blockchain into capital markets. Empower TMX and provincial exchanges to list approved digital assets and stablecoins. Let registered dealer brokers offer decentralized financing (DEFI) products for retail and institutional clients.
• Promote blockchain use in government. Encourage public agencies to piloting blockchain applications, sharing results and best practices to accelerate the adoption across departments and services.
• Create a national cryptocurrency reserve. In coordination with Bank of Canada, explore Select Digital Assets on the National Balance – an idea whose time has come.

All of these steps are part of a major imperative: Future -proofing Canada’s economy. Blockchain is no longer a growing technology – it transforms sectors such as funding, digital identity, supply chains and games. Countries leading in its adoption will reap the economic benefits and shape the architecture of the digital age.

The United States may have scale, momentum and an aggressive mindset, but it is also paralyzed by internal conflict and structural inefficiencies. Canada, on the other hand, is small enough to be agile, but still large enough to influence.

Canada has to act. The opportunity to lead in blockchain innovation is still open. Canada is uniquely placed to seize it. Regardless of the result of the election on April 28, any serious national agenda must include a bold and emerging blockchain policy.