It's a Defense Against Discrimination

Sonya Mann works in communications and marketing at the Zcash Foundation, a financial privacy non-profit.

Many Americans find themselves unable to access the financial system for political reasons.

Common targets of financial exclusion include sex workers, drug users and - oddly enough - gun rights organizations.

Readers may be surprised that the NRA claims to have struggled to access financial services.

In May, the non-profit decided to sue governor Andrew Cuomo and the state's Department of Financial Services.

What if a financial regulator decided that the ACLU's First Amendment advocacy was distasteful, and jeopardized the group's ability to accept donations?

If the reputational risk, or cost of monitoring compliance, outweighs the revenue that a financial services company can garner from a controversial client, it's a rational business decision to drop that client.

The NRA's case demonstrates the critical need for permissionless financial infrastructure.

A truly open financial system would mitigate the state pressure brought to bear against private organizations that advocate for Americans' constitutional rights.

Cryptocurrency is the solution to financial exclusion - if an imperfect one at present.