Fed officials call for embracing the encryption industry

Fed Governor Christopher Waller stated at the Jackson Hole blockchain seminar that digital asset innovation is "nothing to be afraid of" and praised the encryption industry.
On Wednesday, Eastern Time, Fed Governor Chris Waller stated during a speech at the Jackson Hole blockchain seminar that there is "nothing to be afraid of" regarding digital asset innovation, making him the second senior Fed official this week to praise the encryption industry.
"There's nothing to be afraid of when considering smart contracts, tokenization, or distributed ledgers," he said, "Establishing new payment services using innovative technologies is not a new thing."
According to reports, Waller is a popular candidate for the next Fed chair. A recent survey by American media shows that among the 11 candidates currently being considered by the Trump team, his chances of being appointed as Fed chair are only lower than those of Kevin Hassett, the director of the National Economic Council.
In addition, Waller has long been a supporter of the encryption industry and stablecoins. Waller was appointed by President Donald Trump in 2020.
In his speech on Wednesday, he stated that, over the past few years, some top innovations have been "smeared" because they are related to digital assets, but in reality, digital assets and innovations in decentralized finance (DeFi) should not be stigmatized.
"These are just technologies, what’s so bad about them?" he said, "If they can bring about more useful and interesting ways of doing things, then we should also consider and adopt them."
Waller also stated that the Fed is studying how to tokenize things and how to use smart contracts and distributed ledgers.
He stated: "As a central bank, we may never go down this path, but we have no reason not to explore and see what happens."
The day before Waller's speech, Fed Vice Chair Michelle Bowman, who is responsible for bank regulation, also stated that banks and banking regulators should treat the industry better and praised tokenization.
The speeches by Waller and Bowman highlight a shift in the attitude of the Fed's senior officials towards digital assets and payment innovations, which may signify that the future policy environment in the United States will provide more space for encryption and related businesses.