Wu Says Daily Selected Crypto News - US President Signs Cryptocurrency Executive Order, Establishes Task Force to Strengthen Digital Finance Leadership

1. The US President signed an executive order on cryptocurrency and established a working group to strengthen digital financial leadership

The President of the United States officially signed an executive order on cryptocurrency, establishing the Presidential Digital Asset Market Working Group to strengthen the United States' leadership in the field of digital finance. The working group will develop a federal regulatory framework, including stablecoin regulation and a feasibility assessment of the national digital asset strategic reserve. It is chaired by David Sacks, the White House AI and Crypto Technology Commissioner, and members include the Secretary of the Treasury, the Chairman of the SEC, and heads of relevant departments. The order requires federal agencies to review existing regulations and make recommendations to the working group, while prohibiting institutions from promoting or issuing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). The Digital Asset Working Group will develop a regulatory framework, including establishing a market structure, clarifying the definitions of digital assets, securities, commodities, and collectibles; expanding the global dominance of the US dollar through stablecoins; and evaluating the possibility of establishing a national digital asset reserve.

2. Vitalik published an article discussing Ethereum’s L1 and L2 expansion strategies in 2025 and beyond

Vitalik pointed out that the L2 protocol is the core path for Ethereum to expand, and its technology and social collaboration have pushed Ethereum close to the "escape velocity", that is, sufficient network effects and value accumulation to enable its continued growth. At the same time, Vitalik pointed out the two major challenges at present: expansion scale and heterogeneity issues (including standards, interoperability, proof system security, user experience and economic models, etc.). He proposed targeted solutions, including increasing data block capacity, optimizing L2 proof system security, accelerating the promotion of interoperability standards, and strengthening ETH's core position in the Ethereum economy.

3. Bank of Japan raises interest rates by 25 basis points

As expected, the Bank of Japan raised its target rate by 25 basis points from 0.25% to 0.50%, the largest increase since 2007 and the highest rate since October 2008. Since it resumed raising interest rates in March last year, the Bank of Japan has raised interest rates three times in less than 12 months.

4.SEC issues SAB 122: Revokes guidance on custody obligations for crypto assets and requires full disclosure of related risks

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued Accounting Bulletin No. 122 (SAB 122), revoking the interpretative guidance in Topic 5.FF regarding the obligation of platform users to protect crypto assets. The change needs to be fully implemented retroactively in annual financial reports after December 15, 2024, and can also be applied in advance and the impact of the change in accounting principles needs to be disclosed. In addition, the SEC emphasizes that entities need to disclose the risks and obligations related to the custody of crypto assets in accordance with existing regulations (such as S-K regulations and FASB guidance).

5. MicroStrategy may need to pay federal income tax on unrealized Bitcoin gains

Under the 2022 Reduction in Inflation Act (IRA), companies may be subject to a 15% Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax (CAMT), which is based on adjusted GAAP earnings, and crypto assets are not exempted. MicroStrategy is negotiating with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to seek an exemption. If the exemption is not obtained, the company may need to sell some Bitcoin to pay taxes, which may affect its investment strategy. As of now, MicroStrategy holds more than 450,000 Bitcoins, with unrealized gains of approximately $19.3 billion, and taxes may take effect from 2026.

6. North Korean hackers may be behind the Phemex hack

Phemex was hacked on January 23rd, losing more than $70 million worth of cryptocurrency. The attack appears to be similar to the exploit patterns of other well-known crypto exchanges. Taylor Monahan, chief security researcher at MetaMask, said that the attackers siphoned a large amount of assets from multiple chains at the same time, giving priority to exchange for freezable stablecoins (such as USDC and USDT), and then liquidated other tokens in order of value. These operations are not scripted, but done manually, with assets manually sent to a new address for exchange, and once completed, they are passed to another new address. These assets are then stored until the real money laundering team takes them away next week or next month. "The Phemex exchange currently holds about $1.8 billion in crypto assets, most of which are its exchange tokens PT, totaling $1.1 billion.