Bitcoin (BTC) is on its way to a new all-time high trading at $19,100, at the time of publication. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump seems to have accepted his defeat in the November election and given green light to the beginning of the transition in power. In the crypto space, the community is celebrating BTC’s performance and is looking forward to the changes that the new administration will bring.
President-elect Joe Biden has already begun to nominate candidates for Senate approval to form his cabinet. His nominee for Secretary of the Treasury is Janet Yellen. Former Federal Reserve Chairman (2014-2018), Yellen is known for her stand against Bitcoin by stating at 2018 hearing that she is “not a fan” of the cryptocurrency.
Yellen has reiterated her position on several occasions over the years. Although she appears to be optimistic about blockchain technology and “the implications for how transactions are handled in the financial system,” Yellen has called Bitcoin a speculative asset and referred to payments made through its network as potentially illegal:
Bitcoin at this time plays a very small role in the payment system. It is not a stable source of value and it does not constitute legal tender. It is a highly speculative asset.
As the successor to current Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, Yellen would be in charge of dictating policies that could directly impact the crypto industry. Under the Trump administration, the regulators have maintained a tough stance against the crypto market. The current president has called BTC a worthless asset and even asked Mnuchin to “go after Bitcoin,” as former National Security Advisor John Bolton revealed.
Massachusetts State Senator and former presidential pre-candidate Elizabeth Warren has welcomed Yellen’s candidacy. Warren is one of the most influential voices in the Senate. Therefore, it appears that Yellen’s candidacy has begun with strong support for its future approval. Ironically, Warren has presented Yellen as a figure who has taken a strong stand against banks. In one of his most famous quotes about Bitcoin, Yellen indicated that cryptocurrency cannot be regulated:
The Fed doesn’t really play any regulatory role with respect to bitcoin, other than assuring that banking organizations that we do supervise are attentive, that they are appropriately managing any interactions they have with participants in that market, and appropriately monitoring anti-money laundering, bank secrecy act responsibilities that they have.
