Biden administration's new strategy document brings up crypto

The new strategy document has revealed the United States' plan to set global standards for various upcoming technologies, including blockchain

By Shashank Bhardwaj

Published: May 8, 2023 09:20:51 PM IST

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The National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology (Strategy), included in a comprehensive strategy document prepared by the US government, has set the ball rolling on new standards for critical and emerging technologies.

One of the critical and emerging technologies included in the strategy document is blockchain technology, which was specified as distributed ledger technology.

Digital Identity Infrastructure has also been mentioned along with blockchain. The National Institute of Standards and Technology has also published a document on digital identity, which specifically defines digital identity as a unique representation of an entity involved in online transactions.

The Biden administration has set four overall goals that could lead to high-quality global standards of critical and emerging technologies.

The White House press release states," It also will emphasize the Federal Government's support for international standards for critical and emerging technologies (CETs), which will help accelerate standards efforts led by the private sector to facilitate global markets, contribute to interoperability, and promote US competitiveness and innovation."

The four targets of the strategy include setting up a workforce that could step in as a big contributor to the growth of critical and emerging technologies. The government has agreed that workforce quality needs to catch up with evolving organizations.

Integrity and inclusivity also feature among the key objectives under which the US government has intended to collaborate with global partners and allies in setting up high standards for critical and emerging technologies. Other goals include participation and investment in the evolution of the latest technologies.

Blockchain technology finding a place in the strategy document could be an indication by the US government of the extended importance attached to the sector. In recent times, officials of regulatory authorities of the US have made remarks on the verification of digital identities of users of crypto firms. The US Treasury has also conducted studies on central bank digital currencies.

All such instances may lead to concrete outcomes on crypto regulation in the US in the near future.

The writer is the founder at yMedia. He ventured into crypto in 2013 and is an ETH maximalist. Twitter: @bhardwajshash