President Biden's Cryptocurrency Executive Order—What It Does And Does Not Do

On Wednesday, March 9, President Biden issued an "Executive Order on Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets" (hereinafter "EO"). The EO outlines a wide-ranging strategy to assess the risks and potential benefits of digital assets (also known as cryptocurrencies) and their underlying technology. The EO signals that the White House is interested in taking a proactive and coordinated approach to crafting a more robust regulatory and legislative framework for cryptocurrencies. Implicit in this is a recognition that cryptocurrencies are here to stay. The EO indicates that the White House is accepting cryptocurrencies, just as the major traditional financial institutions reluctantly did. As comprehensive as it is aspirational, the EO seeks to promulgate a national policy for digital assets with the objective of achieving seven major goals: consumer and investor protection; financial stability; curbing illicit finance; U.S. leadership in coordinating digital