Biden Embraces Cryptocurrency for ‘All Americans’ After Initial US Fear on Digital Dollar

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - President Joe Biden has signed an executive order (EO) on cryptocurrencies in a landmark embrace of financial innovation technology for all Americans, the White House said on Wednesday.

“We are clear-eyed that ‘financial innovation’ of the past has too often not benefited working families, while exacerbating inequality and increasing systemic financial risk,” the White House said after Biden signed the so-called New Digital Assets Executive Order. “This EO marks an intensification of our efforts to promote responsible innovation in the digital assets space - innovation that works for all Americans, protects our national security interests, and contributes to our economic competitiveness and growth.”

The Federal Reserve said in January that a central bank digital currency, or CBDC, could provide the United States with a safe, digital payment option that allows for faster transactions. But it also cited downside risks as it presented a long-awaited study on the matter, without saying if it wanted such a payment mode.

The global plan for CBDCs gained momentum last year as central banks around the world began exploring ways to not just avert negative impact on their paper currencies from existing crypto assets like Bitcoin, but also profit from their own digital money.

US regulatory officials, including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and New York Attorney General Letitia James, are among those who have advocated strong caution against adopting cryptocurrencies without appropriate due diligence. Yellen has spoken against the extreme volatility in cryptocurrencies, citing Bitcoin’s wild swings up to 14% in a day that could impoverish Americans who aren’t careful.

James has been an active crusader against cryptocurrencies’ abuse of ordinary Americans. In October, she shut down the cryptocurrency trading platform Coinseed after she filed a lawsuit against the company earlier this year. James also secured a recovery of nearly half a billion dollars unlawfully obtained from investors.

The White House sought to allay the lack of cryptocurrency policing with the order signed by Biden.

“Fundamentally, an American approach to digital assets is one that encourages innovation but mitigates the risks to consumers, investors and businesses, broader financial stability, and the environment,” it said. “To these ends, the Order identifies the administration’s policy priorities, both for cryptocurrencies and any future US central bank digital currency, to help guide the evolution of the digital asset ecosystem in a way that is consistent with our values. Governments alone cannot solve these problems, and definitely not a government that operates in silos.”

The White House said Biden's executive order was “the product of months of work” with stakeholders across government, industry, advocacy, academia and international allies and partners to identify actions for responsible innovation in the digital asset ecosystem.

“We remain committed to working with allies, partners, and the broader digital asset community to shape the future of digital asset systems in a manner that is safe, inclusive, and consistent with our democratic values,” it said. “As this ecosystem evolves, so too will our approach.”

The global cryptocurrency market is expected to surpass $3.47 billion in value by 2030 from $842 million in 2020, according to industry statistics.

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