U.S. President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Wednesday calling on the government to examine the risks and benefits of cryptocurrencies.
It calls on federal agencies to take a unified approach to regulation and oversight of digital assets.
The crypto market got wind of the order overnight after Treasury accidentally put out a since-deleted statement calling it “historic” and releasing some of the details ahead of time.
There have been countless stories of investors falling for crypto scams, or losing huge sums of money through cyberattacks on exchanges or users themselves. It also wants regulators to “ensure sufficient oversight and safeguard against any systemic financial risks posed by digital assets,” the White House fact sheet says.