US President Donald Trump has unveiled a long-awaited executive order on cryptocurrencies directing his administration to establish friendly policies to put the industry on solid footing in the United States and seek to establish a “digital asset reserve.” “.
After years of court battles with federal authorities, Trump’s order issued Thursday could allow the digital asset sector to move forward in the United States with a more welcoming framework established by the White House. These orders are more of a beginning than an end in federal policy, but the pro-crypto president has taken that first step.
Bitcoin briefly rose above $106,000 from around $103,000 in the minutes following the news before retracing most of the gains. Recently, BTC changed hands at $103,500, down 0.51% in the last 24 hours.
Thursday’s order said it would protect Americans from prosecution if they developed software, were miners or validators, or transacted “for lawful purposes.”
The order created a task force, chaired by Trump’s cryptocurrency and AI czar (venture capitalist David Sacks) and made up of several Cabinet officials, the heads of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Trade Commission. of Commodity Futures and other White House officials. Although the order does not itself establish a strategic reserve of bitcoins, it does direct the working group to “evaluate the possible creation and maintenance of a national reserve of digital assets.”
The group has to identify all regulations currently affecting cryptocurrencies within 30 days, recommend modifying or rescinding those regulations within 60 days, and submit a report with new recommendations within 180 days.
Trump’s order also prohibits work on a US central bank digital currency in his administration, saying that agencies under his authority are “prohibited from taking any action to establish, issue, or promote CBDCs within the jurisdiction of the United States.” United States or abroad.
The executive order also revoked former President Joe Biden’s 2022 executive order on cryptocurrencies and directed the Treasury Department to similarly repeal its digital assets framework derived from that order.
When Trump failed to issue the document among his initial series of executive orders, crypto experts became increasingly tense about the new relationship he promised. But behind the scenes, leaders of U.S. markets regulators — the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission — were already preparing this week to take digital asset companies off the shelf. sanctions of several years in which they were maintained by officials of the previous agency.
Executive orders can present complicated legal issues. Neither Congress nor independent regulatory agencies (such as the SEC) are technically required to comply with his demands, but Trump’s Republican allies in those places are likely to give in to the wishes represented in the document.
The Republican-majority Congress has its own plans regarding cryptocurrency oversight, including reopening the legislative process that had already produced a market structure and stablecoin bill in the last session. It’s unclear whether the process Trump is putting in place will encourage lawmakers to pause their own cryptocurrency efforts in the meantime.
“I look forward to partnering with President Trump and his team to bring clarity, options and opportunities to this important sector of our 21st century economy,” said Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott, a South Carolina Republican who just assume that committee. in a statement on Thursday.
UPDATE (January 23, 2024, 20:58 UTC): Adds additional details.
UPDATE (January 23, 21:10 UTC): Adds more information from the executive order and context on its effects.
UPDATE (January 23, 21:14 UTC): Adds a comment from Senator Tim Scott.
