TL; DR Breakdown
- President Joe Biden has suspended all new and pending regulatory policies.
- Joe Biden has appointed some crypto proponents to powerful offices.
There’s a new resident in the US White House, and the crypto market seems to be poised to score big from this new development. Over the last few weeks, many have expressed optimism that the new administration would not give cryptocurrencies a hard time. It now seems that this confidence was not misplaced.
Besides the optimistic sentiments that have been running within the industry’s social circles, there has been evidence of some sort of transition on the part of the authorities from the previous anti-cryptocurrency hardline stance to a more accommodative regulatory environment.
Immediate suspension of regulatory rules
Right after Joe Biden took office on January 20th, he moved to suspend the Treasury’s proposals that were aimed at imposing restrictive measures on self-hosted digital/crypto wallets. He also suspended the proposals by FinCEN targeting the industry. The new administration will need to review all the new and pending policies before a final decision can be made.
The said suspensions take effect after numerous complaints by industry players concerned that the public wasn’t given enough time to offer input before they were passed. Many in the industry, especially the main players, have happily welcomed the new developments.
Some main appointees are crypto fans
And giving a positive signal to the market, the new US President has appointed some crypto fans to serve in his administration. One of these is Gary Gensler who will now head the US SEC. Gary has taught blockchain and crypto-related courses at the MIT. Another one is Michael Barr who once worked at the Treasury before working as an advisor to Ripple Labs. Barr will now be the new head of the OCC (Office Comptroller of the Currency).
With these notable appointees at the helm of some of the positions with the power to stifle or support the industry, it’s easy to imagine them working to solve issues affecting the industry and finding ways to bridge the regulatory gap and end the row between the industry and regulatory authorities. In this sense, the new administration might just be the best thing to happen to the crypto market in the coming decade.
