Finance should have consistent, technology-neutral rules that protect people from fraud, regardless of whether the assets are on a balance sheet or in a distributed ledger. This is the opinion of Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury Secretary, who advocated the regulation of cryptoassets in the country in a speech at an American University.
In the Secretary’s view, regulation is essential for the development of the industry, not a barrier. “Digital assets may be new, but many of the problems they present are not. We’ve enjoyed the benefits of innovation in the past and also faced some of the unintended consequences”, Janet Yellen said, according to The Block, referring to issues like tax evasion and illicit finance.
Insured depository institutions should issue Stablecoins
However, despite the favorable view of the crypto market, Yellen reinforced the findings of a Treasury report (PWG) released last year, which finds that “stablecoins bring significant concerns from the standpoint of investor protection and market integrity”.
The document recommends that the U.S. Congress create laws that limit issuers of stablecoins. “To address the risks, legislation should require that issuers of stablecoins be insured depository institutions subject to appropriate oversight and regulation”, the report says.
