White House Slams Crypto as ‘Too Risky’ in Annual Economic Report

The White House went after cryptocurrencies in its annual economic report, calling digital assets too speculative, without economic benefit, and a risk to financial markets and investors. That tone shouldn’t come as a surprise.

U.S. lawmakers and regulators have taken an increasingly harsh look at cryptos over the past year. A selloff in Bitcoin prices and a string of business failures across the sector ushered in scrutiny that has only accelerated since crypto exchange FTX collapsed last November amid allegations of fraud.

The White House went after cryptocurrencies in its annual economic report, calling digital assets too speculative, without economic benefit, and a risk to financial markets and investors. That tone shouldn’t come as a surprise.

U.S. lawmakers and regulators have taken an increasingly harsh look at cryptos over the past year. A selloff in Bitcoin prices and a string of business failures across the sector ushered in scrutiny that has only accelerated since crypto exchange FTX collapsed last November amid allegations of fraud.

Joe Biden’s White House, which has suggested a variety of moves that would rein in the industry, doubled down on scrutiny in the annual Economic Report of the President, published Monday. The report devotes a chapter to digital assets, “debunking” claims about crypto, and detailing arguments against its widespread adoption.

Crypto is mostly a speculative investment, the report said, and the prospects for cryptos as currencies are limited because they don’t perform the functions of money as well as the dollar. Stablecoins are also far from stable, the report said, citing the meltdown of stablecoin Terra last spring, which fueled declines across the digital asset landscape. Crypto assets can also be harmful to consumers and investors, the White House argued, saying the overall economic benefits from blockchain technology have been limited.

The criticism affirms expectations that U.S. regulators will take a tougher stance on the crypto industry.  

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But with Bitcoin possibly heading for a new bull run—with the market capitalization of digital assets up $1.2 trillion from below $800 billion at the start of 2023, vastly outperforming the


Dow Jones Industrial Average

and


S&P 500

—fans of crypto may not be sweating too much for now.

Write to Jack Denton at jack.denton@barrons.com