US Lawmaker Asks GAO for Data on Crypto Investments in 401(k) Plans

A Massachusetts congressman wants the Government Accountability Office to investigate the risks of allowing cryptocurrency investments through retirement accounts.

“Concerns have arisen about the risks to older Americans’ retirement security of using retirement accounts to invest in cryptocurrencies due to their volatility and limited oversight,” U.S. Rep. Richard Neal wrote, according to Bloomberg News.

Neal is chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee.

Among Neal’s requests, according to Bloomberg, is data showing the sorts of employers that are allowing purchases of cryptocurrencies through 401(k) plans. He also posed questions about fees and the methods by which the values of cryptocurrencies are established.

Neal’s letter comes at a tumultuous time for cryptocurrencies, investors in them and companies that built their businesses around them.

See more: Is Tether Stablecoin Due for $80B Day of Reckoning?

According to cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, over the past week (ending at 7 p.m. ET on June 15), bitcoin’s value fell 28 percent; ethereum’s value fell 31 percent; stablecoin tether’s value fell 0.05 percent; and dogecoin lost 24 percent of its value.

Among companies hit hard in conjunction with plummeting values of major cryptocurrencies, Coinbase announced on June 14 that it was going to cut 1,100 people, about 18 percent of its workforce.

Read on: Coinbase Cuts Staff by 18% Ahead of ‘Crypto Winter’

Tether, earlier today (June 15), took the unusual step of announcing it was the subject of “completely false” rumors about the value of the assets it holds.

See also: Binance to Hire 2,000 Amid Wave of Crypto Layoffs

Binance, in contrast, is hiring, the crypto exchange’s chief executive posted on Twitter.

Related: Binance to Hire 2,000 Amid Wave of Crypto Layoffs

Changpeng Zhao Tweeted:  “It was not easy saying no to Super bowl ads, stadium naming rights, large sponsor deals a few months ago, but we did. Today, we are hiring for 2000 open positions for Binance.”

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