The US White House’s Digital Assets Working Group has presented a strategic report with recommendations for forming a new regulatory framework for the crypto industry. This document is intended to lay the foundation for a “golden age of cryptocurrencies” in the United States, against the backdrop of tighter controls in the EU and China.
The group includes key figures:
• Secretary of the Treasury Scott S. Mnuchin;
• Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross;
• SEC Chairman (Securities and Exchange Commission) Paul Atkins.
Key provisions of the document
1. Division of powers between the SEC and CFTC. Cryptocurrencies will be classified according to a clear taxonomy:
Tokens with characteristics of securities (e.g., utility tokens or ICO projects) will remain under SEC control.
Commodity tokens, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, will fall under the CFTC’s jurisdiction, including spot markets.
Comment by Paul Atkins (SEC):
“A rational regulatory framework is the best way to protect investors, ensure transparency, and maintain U.S. leadership in global capital markets.”
2. Support for stablecoins as a geo-economic tool
The document emphasizes:
• the importance of dollar-pegged stablecoins for US global financial dominance;
• the need for legal control over their issuance;
• mandatory cooperation between issuers and law enforcement agencies, including the possibility of freezing or seizing digital assets.
3. Ban on the development of a digital dollar (CBDC)
The working group recommends officially abandoning the idea of a state digital currency, arguing that it poses a threat to privacy and expands the powers of the Federal Reserve. This is in line with Donald Trump’s position, who said that a digital dollar is “a path to totalitarian control.”
4. Tax reform
Proposals
• Create a separate tax regime for digital assets
• Recognize cryptocurrencies as a separate class of property
• Take into account the specific features of staking, DeFi, DAO, and other forms of digital income
5. Involvement of traditional banks
The White House proposes to allow US banks to legally provide cryptocurrency storage services, as well as related investment and settlement products. This is a way to increase competition with crypto exchanges and attract institutional capital.
The US is betting on crypto leadership, but in its own way.
• The new approach differs from the models of China and the EU. While Beijing is building total digital control through the yuan-CBDC, and Europe is strictly regulating DeFi and introducing wallet licensing, the US is choosing a liberal-institutional path without abandoning market initiative.
• Rejecting CBDC is a move that will delight privacy advocates but could weaken the US’s position in the international competition for digital currencies. However, there is also political pragmatism behind this decision: with the 2024 elections looming, this position is advantageous for Trump and his electorate.
• Recognition of the role of stablecoins suggests that the White House no longer sees them as a threat. On the contrary, they are becoming a tool for projecting US monetary policy on a global scale.
• In the future, a new tax jurisdiction could be implemented to encourage crypto startups to return from offshore locations and registrations in Singapore, Malta, and the UAE back to the US.
Comment from the Trump team
The report does not directly mention Bitcoin reserves, but Bo Hines, Trump’s cryptocurrency advisor, said:
“The infrastructure for Bitcoin reserves is already being developed. Details will follow.”
This confirms that crypto could become part of Trump’s economic platform in 2025.
The White House working group’s report marks a turning point — the US is not only not banning crypto, but is preparing to take control of the global crypto space. If the recommendations are implemented, this will increase the flow of capital into American projects and create standards that the whole world will follow.
Source: https://t.me/relocationrs/1247
Italy plans to introduce 26% tax on profit from cryptocurrencies. The government will charge tax if the profit exceeds 2 thousand euros.
Taxpayers have already received letters demanding to indicate the value of their crypto-assets as of January 1, 2023 in the declaration and pay a tax of 14%.
The sharp decline in the value of cryptocurrencies this year put pressure on the shares of companies working in the field of digital currency mining, writes The Wall Street Journal.
Shares of American miners Riot Blockchain Inc. and TeraWulf Inc. Since the beginning of the year, prices have fallen by 78% and 89%, respectively, while the price of Canadian Hut 8 Mining Corp. and Bitfarms Ltd collapsed by 79% and 71%, respectively.
The price of bitcoin has fallen by about 70% from its November highs to $20,000. As a result, North American mining companies have earned less than $20 million per day in the last week, according to Glassnode. In October last year, the average daily revenue was about $72 million.
The situation is aggravated by the fact that banks are less and less willing to do business with representatives of the cryptocurrency sector, which negatively affects their ability to pay for the purchase of new equipment.
According to Arcane Research analyst Yaran Mellerud, companies have to sell almost all the mined cryptocurrency in order to purchase powerful new computers and chips. According to his estimates, in January-April 2022, publicly traded miners sold about 30% of all bitcoins they mined, and in May the figure exceeded 100% – that is, companies had to sell digital assets from their reserves.
“If they have to liquidate a significant portion of their reserves, this could put even more downward pressure on bitcoin prices,” Mellerud said.
According to Glassnode, if the price of bitcoin falls below $17,600, the miners will be unprofitable. On Saturday, the price of bitcoin at some point fell below $17,630 thousand. IDEG believes that the price at which bitcoin mining turns out to be breakeven is even higher – in the region of $28,000 thousand, and with this forecast, miners have been operating at a loss for several weeks.
The value of cryptocurrencies is falling along with other risky assets, including stocks, amid tightening monetary policy and increasing risks of a global recession, many analysts believe. As the world’s central banks are determined to keep raising rates, the fall in digital currencies could be protracted. So, the investment director of Absolute Strategy Research, Ian Hartnett, believes that bitcoin may well fall to $13,000.
A week earlier, market expert Igor Stakovichenko, responding to a request from Open4Business, said that in the current situation, the fall of the bitcoin market below 22,000 launched a new, even deeper “bearish phase” of the cycle, as it greatly shook the positions of long-term holders of the asset. The long-term holders, who had held their positions during the last drops, could not stand it and started dumping the cue ball at the lowest prices.
“This shook the entire structure, and both technical and macroeconomic indicators today indicate a possible fall in the main cryptocurrency to 16,000 or even lower,” the expert said.
However, according to Stakovichenko, it is too early to bury bitcoin, as “whales” (investors owning more than 10,000 BTC) continue to accumulate this digital currency, which may indicate the possibility of growth in the medium and long term.
In addition, the expert predicted possible stabilization and even some growth of the world’s main cryptocurrency.
CRYPTOCURRENCIES, GLASSNODE, MINERS, RIOT BLOCKCHAIN, SHARES, STAKOVICHENKO, TERAWULF, МЕЛЛЕРУД, ХАРТНЕТТ
The Blockchain Association of Ukraine (BAU) has proposed to make Ukraine competitive jurisdiction for companies dealing with cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology and proposed some principles for being implemented into the law, including the introduction of 5% tax on deals with cryptocurrency.
The respective document was posted on the association’s website last week.
According to the text of the document, proposals for implementation in the legislation in the field of regulation of cryptocurrencies were developed with the aim of accelerating the pace of development of this market.
In particular, according to the association, cryptocurrency exchange and sale transactions should not be subject to VAT and cryptocurrency suppliers should not be tax agents of individuals. For transactions with cryptocurrency, personal income tax should be levied at a rate of 5%, and the tax base should be net profit for the reporting year.
Blockchain Ukraine also proposes to introduce licensing of the exchange of cryptocurrency for fiat currencies.
The BAU said that the proposals of the association were accepted for consideration by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine and the interfactional parliamentary association of the Verkhovna Rada Blockchain4Ukraine.
In the near future, it is planned to sign a memorandum of understanding and cooperation between the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the community of blockchain and crypto companies.
The Blockchain Association of Ukraine brings together experts in the blockchain industry and is a non-profit organization that actively promotes the integration of blockchain technology into the Ukrainian economy. The main mission of the association is to develop multilateral dialogue, the result of which will be consensus in all areas of activity.
