The Blockchain Association announced on Sept. 25 in Washington, D.C., that Chief Executive Summer Mersinger will step down on Oct. 16, with founding leader Kristin Smith returning as interim CEO beginning Oct. 17. The trade group said Smith will take the helm while continuing to serve as president of the Solana Institute, and that Mersinger will remain an adviser through year-end to support the transition. The change was detailed in an official announcement from the association. The handover arrives as the group's Washington agenda spans the enacted GENIUS Act stablecoin framework and regulatory engagement with the SEC and CFTC.

Smith, who also serves as president of the Blockchain Association's board, previously led the organization until 2025. She joined as its first employee in 2018 and helped expand its Washington operation. A Solana Institute spokesperson said Smith will remain in her current position while serving as interim CEO and will hold the role until there is "a clear path forward."

Mersinger joined the association in June 2025 after serving as a commissioner at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). She previously held senior congressional staff roles and advised Senate Majority Leader John Thune. Her tenure included stablecoin advocacy, work on SEC and CFTC regulatory matters, and expanded congressional outreach in Washington, D.C.

Stablecoin Advocacy and Regulatory Efforts

During her time as CEO, the association advocated for the GENIUS Act, which President Trump signed into law in July 2025 and which established a federal framework for payment stablecoins. The group also worked on regulatory issues involving the SEC and CFTC, including joint SEC-CFTC interpretation, SEC Regulation Crypto Assets, and the Innovation Exemption.

In February 2026, the association's members petitioned the CFTC over perpetual digital asset contracts. In May, the agency approved Kalshi's bitcoin perpetual contract as a futures contract.

Washington Outreach Grew Under Mersinger

Mersinger testified before the Senate Banking Committee, the House Financial Services Committee, and a House Ways and Means subcommittee. She also launched the association's first in-house grassroots advocacy program, which connected builders, users, and crypto voters with elected officials.

The trade group reported more than 300 congressional and agency meetings in 2026, along with seven member fly-ins on Capitol Hill, and increased its engagement with the White House. That engagement footprint is the operation Smith steps into on an interim basis.

Mutual Praise Ahead of the Handover

Smith credited Mersinger's regulatory and congressional experience for the association's recent work. Mersinger, in turn, said Smith built the association from the ground up and that the organization was prepared for the transition. The association has not announced a timeline for naming a permanent chief executive, leaving that decision — and the endpoint of Smith's interim tenure — the open item to watch as Mersinger's advisory role runs through year-end.