Jerome Powell In As Federal Reserve Chair

January 24, 2018 12:18 AM

On January 23, 2018, Jerome Powell was confirmed by the US Senate as the next chairman of the Federal Reserve. The vote was 85-12. He will take over for Janet Yellen when her term expires in early February 2018.

ETHNews previously reported on Powell’s testimony regarding bitcoin before the Senate Banking Committee in November 2017. Addressing questions from Senator David Perdue (R-GA), Powell explained, “In the long, long run, things – cryptocurrencies – of that nature could matter. They don’t really matter today. They’re just not big enough. There isn’t anywhere near close to enough volume for it to matter.”

However, Powell expressed a positive outlook for blockchain technology, suggesting that it might be a useful development. “We actually look at blockchain as something that may have significant applications in the wholesale payments part of the economy, something we pay close attention to,” he said.

Earlier in 2017, Powell discussed distributed ledger technology at the Yale Law School Center for the Study of Corporate Law.

Matthew is a writer with a passion for emerging technology. Prior to joining ETHNews, he interned for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as well as the OECD. He graduated cum laude from Georgetown University where he studied international economics. In his spare time, Matthew loves playing basketball and listening to podcasts. He currently lives in Los Angeles. Matthew is a full-time staff writer for ETHNews.

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