The price of Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies have jumped sharply higher after the U.S. Treasury Department accidentally released details of an executive order from President Joe Biden that appears to support digital coins and tokens.
Bitcoin was trading at $41,584.21, up nearly 9% in early morning trading, according to CoinDesk. Other cryptocurrencies including Ethereum (ETH) are also sharply higher.
The rally began overnight after the Treasury Department published details and a statement online of an upcoming executive order from the U.S. president on cryptocurrencies. The statement from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was taken down shortly after it appeared.
Multiple media outlets are reporting that President Biden will sign the executive order on cryptocurrencies today (March 9).
The now-removed Treasury statement said the executive order calls for a comprehensive approach to digital asset policy and that government agencies would coordinate their work.
Traders are still awaiting the final executive order, but the Treasury Department statement, which appeared supportive of cryptocurrencies, was enough to boost optimism.
Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder of cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, posted on Twitter (TWTR) that the executive order is a “constructive approach to thoughtful crypto regulation.”
While countries such as China have looked to wipe out cryptocurrency trading, others such as El Salvador have embraced it. But the U.S. currently does not have a high-level framework for developing and regulating cryptocurrencies.
Last year, cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase said the U.S. should create a new regulator to oversee the market for digital coins and tokens.
