White House cybersecurity coordinator and special assistant to the president, Rob Joyce, stated the US still has a long road ahead of it before it starts regulating the world’s first cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin investors in the US worried about government regulation need not start sweating, yet.
At the Munich Security Conference in Germany, Joyce — a nearly three-decade veteran of the National Security Agency who helps coordinate policy strategy in regards to cybersecurity between the government, private companies, non-governmental organizations and other countries — emphasized the importance of taking a measured approach to Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency space, as opposed to rushing in with government regulation which could have unintended consequences.
Joyce said:
I think we’re still absolutely studying and understanding what the good ideas and bad ideas in that space are. So, I don’t think [government regulation is] close.
Still, Joyce recognizes the already-proven criminal potential within the cryptocurrency space. As reported by CNBC — which incorrectly claims Bitcoin transactions are “completely anonymous” — Joyce doesn’t gloss over the inherent difficulties involved with monitoring criminal transactions across the blockchain, explaining:
We are worried. There are benefits to the bitcoin concept — digital cash, digital currencies. But at the same time, if you look at the way bitcoin works after there is a criminal act that takes place, you can’t rewind the clock and take back that currency.
Source/More: White House Official: Bitcoin Regulation Won’t Happen Anytime Soon – Bitcoinist.com
