The White House is continuing to develop its National Digital Assets Research and Development

The National Digital Assets Research and Development Agenda is still being worked on by the administration of United States Vice President Joe Biden, who is still in office.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has issued a request for information (RFI) dated January 26 and posted by the Federal Register. The OSTP is inviting comments to assist it in determining which agenda goals should be prioritised.

By the 23rd of March, individuals and groups may submit comments that are no more than ten pages in length. After the “first-ever” Comprehensive Framework for Responsible Development of Digital Assets was presented in September, the White House made the announcement that the formulation of the agenda would be the next step in the administration’s efforts.

The president’s executive order titled “Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets,” which was issued in March, was the impetus for a flurry of research work relating to cryptocurrencies, and the new agenda is a component of that activity.

According to the request for information (RFI), the agenda’s goal was to “shape an effort by the whole government” to create digital assets and distributed ledger technology.

It was also referred to be a method to “kickstart basic research” and “continue to encourage research that turns technology advances into market-ready goods.”

It said there: “Research and development (R&D) in this area has often been carried out in a disjointed fashion, with little thought given to the wider ramifications, uses, and potential drawbacks of the inventions that are at the core of the field. […] A research and development strategy that takes a more comprehensive approach would give tangible areas of emphasis that might be used to realise a holistic vision of an ecosystem for digital assets that symbolises democratic principles in addition to other major concerns.”

The adoption of the Chips and Science Act in August resulted in the creation of a specialised post within the OSTP for blockchain technology.

As part of its mandate, the office investigated the effects that digital assets have on the environment and prepared a report on those effects. Additionally, as part of the ongoing and as of yet inconclusive consideration of a digital dollar for the United States, the office compiled a survey of central bank digital currency design options.

The response to Vice President Biden’s broad framework varied from lukewarm support to vehement expressions of dissatisfaction.