Former House Speaker Paul Ryan calls on U.S. to fight China with stablecoins

Crypto policy has decidely begun to impact the 2024 Presidential race, as Biden administration officials reportedly plan to attend a policy roundtable hosted by Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) and former President Trump expresses support for keeping crypto companies onshore . 

Now, former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, who served as the top Republican in the House of Representatives under Presidents Obama and Trump before retiring in 2019, is joining the debate by urging lawmakers in Washington to consider crafting a "sound, predictable regulatory framework for stablecoins" in the United States. Ryan now serves on the Policy Council of crypto-focused VC firm Paradigm. 

Ryan argued in a recent Wall Street Journal opinion piece that one response lawmakers should consider when faced with the ever-growing pile of American debt is to embrace stablecoins, making that debt more attractive in international markets and fending off the possibility of a failed debt auction, which Ryan argues would "roil markets and severely undermine U.S. credibility." 

"If other countries are successful at bolstering their currencies’ influence while dumping Treasury debt, the U.S. will need to find new ways to make the dollar more attractive. Dollar-backed stablecoins are one answer," Ryan argues in the article. 

Ryan notes that China has embraced digital dollar technology through its e-yuan central bank digital currency. HSBC China recently became the first foreign bank in the country to offer banking services utilizing the e-yuan, though the currency has struggled to gain popularity with everyday citizens, The Block previously reported . 

"The U.S. can’t afford to sit idly as its largest international competitor taps latent demand for safe and convenient digital money," Ryan argues, noting that China and Saudi Arabia, who in the past have been large purchasers of American debt, are "increasingly looking for options for settling payments outside the dollar system." 

Ryan took care not to endorse a similar central bank digital currency in the U.S. by stating, "Unlike China’s digital financial infrastructure, dollar-backed stablecoins issued on public, permissionless blockchains come packaged with the deeply American values of freedom and openness." Ryan didn't elaborate on which stablecoins in particular he would like to see promoted. 

Ryan closed by calling for a bipartisan effort to craft a sound and predictable regulatory framework for stablecoins in Congress. "In an election year, given all the ugly politics to come, we sure could use a win," Ryan wrote.