The President of the United States, Joe Biden on Wednesday approved and signed an order that requested the Federal Reserve to explore more about the opportunities surrounding cryptocurrency and decipher if the central bank should take lead and create its own digital currency.
In the war-torn area where millions of dollars in crypto has flown in to support the Ukrainian army, the Biden administration understands the explosive popularity and widespread demand of cryptocurrency and wants to identify the opportunities available around the same. The Biden government wants to explore the risks and benefits associated with such digital assets, as contemplated by a senior administration official in Tuesday as per the terms set by the White House.
Under the same direction, Biden has also asked the Treasury Department and the other federal agencies to examine the impact of cryptocurrency on financial stability, long-term applications, and national security. The same was asserted by Brian Deese and Jake Sullivan, the top economic and national security advisers of the Biden government. They continued stating how the order aims to establish a comprehensive federal digital assets strategy for the United States.
The setting of a digital currency will position the US to play a strategic role in the digital asset ecosystem back home and fuel innovation and growth abroad as well. In a way, it will bolster the US global competitive spirit and embark upon innovation and governance in the field.
This action has been a straight result of the increasing concerns around Russia’s use of cryptocurrency to avoid the impact of the sanctions slapped against it by banks, the oil industry, and oligarchs. The US Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Mark Warner, and Jack Reed asked the Treasury Department how it would inhibit and prevent the use of cryptocurrency by Russia to evade the sanctions imposed against it. However, the government strongly believes that crypto will not be a workaround for Russia. Despite the challenges and risks, government surveys reveal that over 40 million people have invested in cryptocurrency. Coinbase Global Inc., the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the US said to not have witnessed any recent surge around the sanction evasions activity.
