Through July 4, The Post, in conjunction with the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream, is featuring US citizens explaining what the American dream means to them in 2026 — including Caroline Pham, the chief legal officer of MoonPay and former commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Access to capital is everything. Because any one of us can have that bright idea — but how do we take that idea and … put it into action? How do we achieve the American dream?
We can only do that with access to capital. Having an investor who believes in you, who gives you that first funding, whether it’s in a seed round or it’s a venture capitalist or it’s an angel investor.
Whether it’s a bank who sees you trying to start a small business and wants to give you that first loan that will enable you to hire your first employee … All of those things involve capital, and it all involves credit.
The financial markets exist to help to facilitate the flow of credit to businesses and to households that are actually contributing to economic growth … If you are engaging in some kind of transaction, whether it’s lumber or it’s gold, or you have a loan, our markets enable that risk management.
What’s so incredible about this particular inflection point in financial markets and in our world is that we have technology that is enabling greater peer-to-peer connection among ordinary individuals that have a mobile application.
If you have a smartphone and you have an app, you can now engage in not just financial transactions, but an entire virtual community anywhere in the world.
Now, especially with new technologies like the blockchain and with Web3, that connection can be instantaneous. Having financial transactions that can be processed in a matter of seconds instead of days, it’s something that can really transform the digital economy.
But financial literacy is incredibly important. In the United States, we no longer are taught home economics or basic economics — how to manage your account balances, how to go to the bank, how to invest, how to understand these different financial products, how to manage your savings. And financial literacy is going to be a huge component of helping to ensure prosperity and security for all Americans.
The American Dream Video Project showcases real stories that illuminate pathways to opportunity. Featured at the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream (MCAAD), this series is part of the Center’s celebration of America’s 250th anniversary. MCAAD is Washington, DC’s newest cultural institution, offering interactive exhibits and stories about achieving the American Dream. For more information, visit mcaad.org.