The US authorities must double their capacity to control digital assets and find out where there are gaps in the legislative control of cryptocurrencies, the White House said on Friday, noting how much risk cryptos pose to the proper functioning of the global financial system.
The US Treasury Department is expected to lead a special task force that will design a government-controlled digital currency, although the White House has never accepted the idea of supporting a digital dollar.
This collective action by US authorities was announced alongside a series of investigations which followed Biden’s presidential executive order on “Ensuring the Responsible Development of Digital Assets”.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told reporters that innovation is one of the core practices of financial system development, “but as we have learned badly from history, innovation without the right regulatory framework can cause extremely significant dysfunction and harm both the financial system and individuals.”
The U.S. Treasury reports call on relevant regulatory agencies to urgently issue a series of regulations and guidance regarding the risk inherent in the digital asset ecosystem, including the potential use of digital currencies in money laundering or fraud cases.
Biden is even considering using Congress so as to move to audit organizations that provide services related to digital assets, including cryptocurrency exchanges.
In addition, the US president is receiving suggestions from auditing mechanisms to establish specific auditing mechanisms at the federal level.
Last year the total value of digital currencies exceeded $3 trillion, but in recent months we have witnessed a rapid decline in their value.