North Carolina Won't Allow Candidates To Accept Cryptocurrencies

Candidates for political office in North Carolina will not be allowed to accept campaign donations in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. 

State Board of Elections Executive Director Kim Westbrook Strach explained her decision in a July letter to congressional candidate Emmanuel Wilder. Strach wrote that cryptocurrencies cannot be valued reliably, and state campaign finance laws are written with monetary limits defined in U.S. dollars.

The News & Observer reports Wilder is a Republican challenging incumbent Democrat Gale Adcock in House District 41. He had asked earlier this year if he could accept donations in digital currency.

In 2014, the Federal Election Commission said candidates for federal office could accept Bitcoin donations. But Strach says the board isn't confident it could regulate cyptocurrency contributions.

Wilder said in a statement that he's disappointed but appreciative of the board's consideration.