Last month, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued guidance that banks can store and work with cryptocurrency.
Most people have probably never heard about the OCC. But it regulates all U.S. banks. So it’s one of the most powerful federal agencies in the country.
Here’s an excerpt from its landmark guidance on crypto:
We conclude a national bank may provide… cryptocurrency custody services on behalf of customers, including by holding the unique cryptographic keys associated with cryptocurrency.
This news is huge for crypto adoption. The OCC basically gave the traditional financial system the green light to come into crypto.
All of a sudden, every bank in the United States can safely get into crypto without fear of running afoul of regulators. And this move will accelerate adoption of crypto assets.
Let me put this in perspective for you…
Right now, 35–50 million people own crypto. That’s 0.6% of the world’s population.
The U.S. banking system alone touches the lives of over 300 million Americans. And it holds north of $20 trillion in assets. If bank customers allocate just 1% of their accounts to bitcoin… bitcoin’s market cap would double.
We believe crypto adoption will be as widespread as internet adoption – maybe even more so.
Eighty percent of central banks are engaged in digital currency research, according to the Bank for International Settlements. And the World Economic Forum estimates blockchain projects will store 10% of the world’s gross domestic product – or about $8.6 trillion – by 2027.
Right now, the entire crypto market cap is around just $350 billion. When hundreds of millions of people get easy access to crypto, you’ll see the entire space just explode in value.
The OCC’s new guidance on crypto assets is bullish for the entire space.
So we had PBRG chief analyst, Grant Wasylik, reach out to U.S. Representative Darren Soto (D-Florida), a leading expert in blockchain – and co-chair of the Congressional Blockchain Caucus – for his take…
It’s a can’t-miss interview…
An Interview with Representative Darren Soto
Grant: Thanks for joining us, Rep. Soto. You’re one of the foremost experts on blockchain tech in Congress. What’s your take on the OCC letter?
Rep. Soto: It’s a move in the right direction. It further legitimizes cryptocurrency. Now, it’s been blessed. And it plays an important part in the maturation of the cryptocurrency market.
Grant: Will the new guidance change Congress members’ views on blockchain and crypto assets?
Rep. Soto: It’s one step in a longer journey. The real challenge is educating members and getting them more comfortable. This letter helps do that. We’re already in talks on some bills. A month ago, these discussions may not have happened.
Grant: How long before a major bank offers crypto banking?
Rep. Soto: I would expect larger financial institutions to offer these products by next year. For smaller and startup institutions, I see them filling the void in the meantime. Some of them will have great success and could capture a large market share. There’s a lot of potential.
Grant: Is Congress currently working on any blockchain legislation?
Rep. Soto: We had two recent amendment wins with the Department of Defense and United States Department of Agriculture [USDA].
We got the Department of Defense to include distributed ledger technology as a qualified competitive-edge technology for the military. It creates the demand for innovation. And it protects our national security.
We also got the USDA to use blockchain technology to track food tracing. We’re trying to form an Office of Blockchain Excellence, by way of the White House budget, that would tie a lot of these things together.
Grant: What else is brewing on the blockchain front in Congress?
Rep. Soto: There are dozens of blockchain and crypto bills on the docket. The only ones that matter are those that are moving.
We’ve worked on several out of our office. Two big ones are the Token Taxonomy Act and the Digital Taxonomy Act… The goal is to create the legal framework for a digital asset market in jurisdictions for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Federal Trade Commission, and Securities and Exchange Commission.
These bills would establish the first new financial asset under federal law in decades. This is a longer-term goal that will take some time. But having the [OCC] letter helps in the absence of that.
These were just some highlights from Grant’s interview. But as you can see, the opportunity in blockchain is bigger than anything you can ever imagine.
That’s why we call it the No. 1 investment of the decade. In fact, we believe blockchain will be so big, it could revolutionize the entire economy.
Daily editor Teeka Tiwari believes blockchain will create as many as 818,000 new millionaires in the coming years. And we could see an entire rebirth of America thanks to this revolutionary technology.
Regards,
 |
Chaka Ferguson
Managing Editor, Palm Beach Daily
P.S. The blockchain revolution could lead to the biggest wealth and power shift in history. And the people who see this shift coming – and, more importantly, take the right steps – will grow fantastically wealthy… But those who don’t will be left even further behind. Learn more here…