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Clayton, speaking on CNBC, said bitcoin’s popularity stems from that disappointment in traditional payments.
“What we are seeing is that our current domestic and international payment mechanisms have inefficiencies. Those inefficiencies are the things that are driving the rise of bitcoin,” he said, according to the report.
He scolded a suggestion by CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin that bitcoin could be regulated as a security, saying instead that the coin “was much more of a payment mechanism” than a security, Coindesk reports.
Clayton, who is set to step down from his position at the end of the year, said he thought bitcoin would prove to be an emerging force in the world of payments.
“I think we will see this mature and I think we will see more regulation around the payments space,” he said.
This is despite many of the SEC’s past attitudes towards cryptocurrencies: in Clayton’s time, the launch of several proposed bitcoin-trading funds was blocked.
Bitcoin has been on an upward trend in recent months, with more traditional recognitions and many governments around the world looking to launch digital currency programs. This has been accelerated by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led people to shift more towards cashless and non-physical forms of payment.
The change has been noticed by big-name companies, including PayPal, which recently implemented a method to allow customers to directly buy, hold and sell cryptocurrencies. In late October, the payment giant would also be considering buying some cryptocurrency companies.
In another example, the Fed is working with MIT to examine ways to implement digital currencies in the infrastructure. And recently, the Office of the Currency Controller said national banks and federal savings associations could hold reserves for customers who issue stablecoins.
