Janet Yellen Admits Crypto Has Benefits — Says Treasury Working on Crypto Regulation

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has admitted that there are benefits to cryptocurrency. Crypto has grown by leaps and bounds and is now “playing a significant role” in the investment decisions of lots of Americans, Yellen said, adding that the Treasury Department is working on regulatory recommendations for healthy innovation.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen talked about cryptocurrency in an interview with CNBC Friday. She was asked about cryptocurrency given that Russia has said it is considering accepting bitcoin as payment for energy resources.

"Crypto has obviously grown by leaps and bounds and it’s now playing a significant role, not really so much in transactions, but in investment decisions of lots of Americans." she says.

She proceeded to explain that President Joe Biden’s executive order  tasks the treasury department and other federal agencies with “thinking about the regulation of crypto.”

When asked about whether she is still skeptical about crypto, the treasury secretary commented: “I have a little bit of skepticism because I think there are valid concerns around it. Some have to do with financial stability, consumer-investor protection, use for illicit transactions, and other things.” She added:

On the other hand, there are benefits from crypto and we recognize that the innovation in the payment system can be a healthy thing.