Biden announces nomination of Janet Yellen to lead Treasury Department

President-elect Joe Biden has confirmed the nomination of former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen as the next Secretary of the U.S. Treasury Department, the Biden transition team announced Monday. 

If confirmed, Yellen will be the first woman ever to lead the department. She will also take the reins of a government department that has slowly moved to take a more proactive position on cryptocurrency, particularly in the areas of anti-money laundering and taxation.

Yellen has expressed skepticism about the crypto space, declaring "I am not a fan," at a fintech conference in October 2018. However, she has also shown more optimism for blockchain technology, calling it "an important technology" in January 2017 . 

It remains unclear what role the Treasury Department could play in the launch of a future digital dollar. The Trump administration’s Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, has said he doesn't see the need for a digital dollar. 

So far, Yellen has not commented heavily on central bank digital currencies. At a 2017 press conference, Yellen discussed the Federal Reserve's stance on the creation of a digital currency, saying “this is not something the Federal Reserve is seriously considering at this stage.”

“While we're looking at research on this topic, there are, I think to my mind, limited benefits from introducing it, a limited need for it and some substantial concerns,” she added.