Whenever Janet Yellen is about to speak, people listen to know about any news related to the monetary policy of the United States. But this time, it was different. Holding a speech at a House of Representatives committee hearing, Federal Reserve (Fed) chairwoman Janet Yellen remarked that the US central bank is “trying to understand” financial technologies like cryptocurrencies and blockchain.
Fed’s chairwoman was speaking before the Committee on Financial Services (you can see the record of her testimony here) and she was asked by Rep. Mick Mulvaney about the Fed’s position on cryptocurrencies and whether it is investigating internal applications of blockchain.
Yellen stated that the Fed wasn’t doing so. She mentioned that the central US monetary authority was pursuing lines of inquiry within the broader context of fintech. But she stated that blockchain tech could have a major impact on payments and banking in the future.
According to Yellen in her speech at a House of Representatives:
“It (blockchain) could have very significant implications for the payments system and the conduct of business. We want to foster innovation. I think innovation using these technologies could be extremely helpful and bring benefits to society.”
She said on Fed and blockchain “we’re simply trying to understand the nature” of this technology, adding that the Fed is not active in any kind of pursuing of rule-making process at this time. These comments came only more than two years after Yellen first indicated that the Fed wouldn’t move to regulate bitcoin and other digital currencies. All this happens amid growing momentum around blockchain in Washington, DC. This week we could see the formation of a congressional caucus dedicated to the technology, as well as the establishment of an information hub co-founded by the Chamber of Digital Commerce and DC-based incubator 1776.
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