The US Federal Reserve (Fed) has downplayed banking risks from crypto volatility, while the Treasury Department is urging Congress to pass the CLARITY Act this spring.
Amid the recent correction in the digital asset market, US financial authorities maintain a moderate view of its impact on the economy.
On the one hand, the Federal Reserve believes that, despite the volatility seen in cryptocurrencies, the stability of traditional banking has not been compromised. At the same time, the Treasury Department acknowledges that the technological advancement of the U.S. financial sector increasingly depends on a modern regulatory framework that fosters innovation and global competitiveness.
Create your account and access the crypto marketThe Federal Reserve's stance on Bitcoin volatility and traditional banking
During a recent symposium in California, the Federal Reserve Governor, Christopher WallerThe central bank offered a calming perspective on the fluctuations in the digital market. According to the monetary authority, the episodes of extreme volatility, popularly known as "crypto winters," do not represent a direct threat to the stability of banking institutions.
Waller Held These movements are an intrinsic feature of the crypto sector, one that still operates, to a large extent, outside the conventional financial core.
The market correction that began in mid-October, which has taken Bitcoin from its highs of $126.000 to the $60.000 range on February 5, was described by Waller as a normal adjustment. The official noted that, viewed in perspective, A price of $60.000 is still high compared to levels less than a decade ago., when reaching $10.000 was considered an extraordinary milestone.
According to their analysis, the banking system remains operational, payments are being processed without interruption, and citizens' daily financial lives have not been disrupted by losses in the digital sector.
Furthermore, the Federal Reserve governor attributes some of the recent selling pressure to the same traditional financial institutions that recently entered the crypto market. When faced with periods of political or economic uncertainty, these institutions typically liquidate their riskier assets to adjust their balance sheets. This behavior confirms that, despite increased interconnectedness, commercial banks' defense mechanisms have held. Waller emphasized that the underlying technologies, such as tokenization and smart contracts, are efficient operational tools and not inherently dangerous.
Buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies hereThe Treasury Department urges a legal framework for crypto assets
On the other side of the regulatory coin in the United States, the Secretary of the Treasury, Scott Bessent, has expressed growing concern about the stagnation of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (Clarity Act)In his recent statements, Bessent urged lawmakers to act before the legislative window closes in spring 2026. According to the Treasury, the lack of clear rules on the structure of the crypto market prevents the United States from consolidating its financial sovereignty in the global digital ecosystem.
The secretary identified the existence of "recalcitrant actors" within the industry and politics who have stalled the bill's progress. As this publication has reported, the central dispute centers on the regulations for stablecoins and the returns they can offer. While companies in the sector seek freedom to innovate and compete with international systems, community banks fear that offering high interest rates on digital dollars will trigger a flight of deposits from local institutions, impacting credit to small businesses and families.
Bessent acknowledged the legitimacy of these concerns, but argued that resolving conflicts through sound law is preferable to keeping the market in a legal limbo.
Trade regulated stablecoins: start todayTowards the full regulation of digital money
The Treasury's urgency also stems from a national security strategy. The intention is to attract innovation to the United States to prevent capital from moving to foreign jurisdictions with more defined regulatory frameworks. According to the Treasury Department, a clear market structure would strengthen the domestic financial ecosystem and allow the digital dollar to maintain its reserve currency status.
This legislative push seeks to complement the existing GENIUS Act, which established 100% reserve requirements for dollar-backed stablecoins.
The Treasury sees these digital assets as an opportunity to finance public debt, since regulated stablecoin issuers are required to hold their reserves primarily in short-term Treasury bonds. However, without the passage of the CLARITY Act, the regulatory framework is considered inadequate to manage the complexity of the market as a whole.
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