A recent event in Washington attended by representatives from over 90 central banks had Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen encourage her counterparts to study emerging technologies, specifically mentioning bitcoin and the blockchain.The Federal Reserve Annual Meeting, a three-day event hosted by the Federal Reserve, World Bank, and the IMF in Washington had a notable attendee this year in the Chamber of Digital Commerce (CDC).The group represents the blockchain industry and is the world’s largest trade association in the space.This year’s gathering specifically focused on financial technology or fintech and with the aptly titled event “Finance in Flux: The Technological Transformation of the Financial Sector.” The theme of this year’s conference was on bitcoin’s underlying technology – blockchain and the FinTech sector.While the event was closed to the press, the CDC, in a press release, revealed that Janet Yellen, the Chair of the Board of Governors of the Fed Reserve, urged her fellow central bankers to study new innovation in the financial industry.

Notably, she mentioned bitcoin and blockchain specifically as innovations that needed to be understood by central banks.Stating that the global financial system had undeniably benefited from fintech, she encouraged central banks to ‘do all they can to learn about financial innovations including bitcoin, blockchain and distributed ledger technologies,’ the press release revealed.Yellen has, in a stance that benefits bitcoin and blockchain innovation, stated that the Fed Reserve does not have the authority to regulate the cryptocurrency.At a hearing in Congress in early 2014, an event that was streamed live to a worldwide audience, Yellen stated: Bitcoin is a payment innovation that’s taking place outside the banking industry.To the best of my knowledge there’s no intersection at all, in any way, between Bitcoin and banks that the Federal Reserve has the ability to supervise and regulate.So the fed doesn’t have authority to supervise or regulate Bitcoin in anyway.In a statement included in the CDC press release of the recently concluded event, Bitcoin Core Developer and Bloq CEO Jeff Garzik added: Some of the greatest potential benefits of blockchain technology are going to be first seen actively leveraged in emerging nations.

While addressing the assembled group of central bankers, he reportedly spoke about the characteristics of blockchain technology.Ironically, the features he discussed included decentralization while talking to central bankers, cryptography, immutability, trust shifting and other features.CDC Founder and President Perianne Boring joined Yellen in urging the Federal Reserve and other central banks to embrace blockchain technology.$150 in bitcoinShe outlined the reason in a statement that said: We believe blockchain technologies are capable of providing the Fed and other regulators with next generation tools to fulfill their mission of monitoring the safety and soundness of the financial system more effectively.bitcoin legal or illegal in indiaUS Federal Reserve chairwoman Janet Yellen has issued new comments on how she believes the country's financial regulators should address bitcoin and blockchain technologies, stating that these agencies must be careful not to "stifle innovation".nyse bitcoin price

The statements were issued in response to a question submitted to Yellen by US Representative Mick Mulvaney following a 15th July meeting of the House Committee on Financial Services' Monetary Policy and Trade, of which he serves as vice chairman.In his 11-page submission, Mulvaney sought clarity as to how the central bank viewed the increasing popularity of bitcoin after this summer's economic crisis in Greece, notably asking Yellen if the technology's increasing popularity implied the public may be losing faith in the Fed's ability to conduct monetary policy.1 bitcoin in doge"We do not interpret bitcoin's popularity as having a relationship with the public's view of the Federal Reserve's conduct of monetary policy."litecoin devDespite asking two questions, Yellen focused most of her response on how she believes regulation should develop in the US, emphasizing that the Federal Reserve and federal banking agencies have "limited authority over the operation of digital currency systems" as a whole.bitcoin expo 2015

"Where a banking organization supervised by the Federal Reserve provides services to a business or individual that is an administrator or exchange of a digital currency, the Federal Reserve seeks to ensure that the banking organization fully complies with all applicable regulations," Yellen stated.Other federal and state regulators, she continued, may have different authorities over the technology, depending on their specific mandates.bitcoin gratis italiaThe remarks are consistent with past public statements given by Yellen in regards to the development of bitcoin and blockchain technologies.litecoin not miningYellen first addressed the technology in a Senate Banking Committee meeting last February, at which time she stated that the US central bank does not have the authority to supervise or regulate digital currency systems such as bitcoin.bitcoin con sms

Yellen suggested that US authorities weigh the "costs and benefits" of new statutes or regulations carefully.Aspects to consider, she suggested, include how such laws could "strengthen the soundness of virtual currency schemes and increase public trust in the products" and whether the technology represents a "significantly different or greater risk" than other new payment systems.Yellen cautioned that the "evolving nature" of the technology means that such laws should not stifle innovation, a balance that regulators have so far stressed they are seeking to strike with mixed success."Some may refrain from investing in or using digital currencies due to a perceived legal uncertainty and/or lack of consumer protection," she continued.New York's state-specific regulatory regime for digital currencies, for example, has come under fire by industry supporters for being overly vague while imposing high costs on startups.Other attempts, such as those ongoing in California, have been met with equally mixed public responses.