US President-elect Donald Trump announced that upon assuming office on January 20, he will appoint Republican lawyer Paul Atkins, a supporter of the development of digital currencies, as head of the Financial Markets Regulatory Authority.
Paul Atkins, who was a commissioner in this body between 2002 and 2008 during the era of former President George Bush, will succeed Democrat Gary Gensler, who announced his resignation at the end of November after Trump won the presidential elections.
Sector development
Atkins currently serves as Managing Director of Patomac Global Partners, a risk management consulting firm, and is an advisor to Digital Chamber, an organization that promotes the blockchain technology on which cryptocurrencies are based.
Although Atkins openly criticizes the use of cryptocurrencies for speculative purposes, he constantly calls for the development of this sector for transactional purposes.
Trump wrote on his social media platform, “Truth Social,” that “Paul demonstrated his support for a common-sense organization.”
He added, “He believes in strong and innovative financial markets that meet the needs of investors.”
Trump stressed that Atkins “also realizes that digital assets are essential to making America greater than it has ever been.”
Bitcoin…a record number
Cryptocurrency markets responded by recording record numbers, as Bitcoin, the largest and most famous digital asset, rose to the level of $103,900.74 before falling slightly to the level of 102,607.70 at the time of writing this report.
- Ethereum rose 5% in the last 24 hours to $3,938.
- Solana Coin increased 1.75% to $240.21.
- Dogecoin increased 6.76% to $0.4457.
The combined market value of cryptocurrencies has increased to $3.7 trillion.
