US President Joe Biden is set to sign a first-of-its-kind executive order directing federal agencies to collaborate on the development of cryptocurrency regulations.
The "whole-of-government" effort to regulate the crypto industry will focus on consumer protection, financial stability, illicit uses, leadership in the global financial sector, financial inclusion, and responsible innovation, according to a fact sheet released by the White House on Wednesday.
The fact sheet stated the executive order will define six "key priorities" for the administration: protecting US interests; protecting global financial stability; preventing illicit uses; promoting "responsible innovation."
Giving reasons for the development, the fact sheet explained that digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, have seen explosive growth in recent years, surpassing a $3 trillion market cap last November and up from $14 billion just five years prior.
Surveys suggest that around 16 per cent of adult Americans (about 40 million people) have invested in, traded, or used cryptocurrencies.
Moreover, over 100 countries are exploring or piloting central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), a digital form of a country’s sovereign currency, it added.
Bitcoin Sees A Jump In Price
Understandably, this was seen as good news.
Even before the press release was published, Bitcoin, the top cryptocurrency by market capitalisation, crossed the $42,000-mark after the US Treasury apparently released details of an executive order from Biden that appeared to take a supportive stance toward digital assets, according to a Coindesk news report.
A statement from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen briefly appeared on the Treasury website before it was taken down.
Support for Ukraine
Meanwhile, Wladimir Klitschko, a former Ukrainian boxer, has launched a non-fungible token (NFT) collection in aid of Ukraine.
The two-time world heavyweight champion has tied up with artist WhIsBe amid the ongoing crisis in the country, according to various media reports.
All proceeds from the collection titled "Vandalz for Ukraine: WhIsBe x Wladimir Klitschko" will go to the Red Cross Ukraine and UNICEF. OpenSea, the NFT marketplace, will be hosting the drop.
The Utah-based cryptocurrency exchange CoinZoom is pausing applications for new accounts within Russia following the country's escalating conflict with Ukraine, the company's chief executive officer told Reuters.
Cryptocurrency prices are rising.
In the cryptocurrency market, the price of Bitcoin (BTC) was up by 8.46 per cent in the last 24 hours, while it was trading at $42,101.69 at 4:00 pm IST.
Its dominance in the crypto market is currently at 43.28 per cent, up by 0.86 per cent in the last 24 hours, according to Coinmarketcap.com.
In the last 24 hours, Ethereum (ETH) was trading at $2,757.38, with a rise of 7.13 per cent, while Binance Coin (BNB) rose 2.74 per cent over the same period and was trading at $395.00. Solana (SOL) rose 5.46 percent to $88.70, while Cardano (ADA) rose 5.05 percent to $0.848.
Coins of Meme
Among meme coins, Dogecoin was up by 3.76 per cent and was trading at $0.1235 at 4:00 pm on Coinmarketcap.com. Rival Shiba Inu was up by 4.56 per cent in the last 24 hours and was trading at $0.00002433.
Dogelon Mars was up by 3.39 per cent and was trading at $0.0000007457, while Samoyedcoin was trading at $0.01946, recording a rise of 5.29 per cent in the last 24 hours.
Overall Scenario
The global crypto market cap was at $1.84 trillion, registering an increase of 5.84 percent in the last 24 hours, while the total crypto market volume was $96.11 billion, up by 7.97 percent.
Metaverse ALL BEST ICO (METAALLBI) was the biggest gainer, rising 832.53 percent.It was trading at $0.006885 at 5:00 pm, as per Coinmarketcap data. The DePo (DEPO) suffered the greatest loss, falling 97.69 percent, and was trading at $0.0009287, according to Coinmarketcap data.
