
How do ECB President Lagarde and US Treasury Secretary Yellen feel about cryptocurrencies? Both warn of a lack of regulations, but are not fundamentally opposed to digital money.
The current soaring of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is driving the monetary authorities into trouble. You see their influences dwindling as institutional and private investors trust the crypto sector. The President of the European Central Bank (ZEB) Christine Lagarde took part in a conference call organized by the business magazine The Economist and presented her position on the subject. She said on Wednesday, according to media reports, that she does not see Bitcoin as a real currency, adding that central banks will not hold it as a reserve currency anytime soon.
” It’s very unlikely – I’d say it’s out of the question.
So Lagarde in the original sound. Most recently, ECB President Lagarde spoke rather critically about Bitcoin at a conference of the Reuters news agency in January. She called for global regulation. She also said that in some cases criminals have used the digital currency for money laundering activities and that all loopholes need to be closed.
” There has to be regulation. It has to be applied and agreed … on a global level because if there is a way out, that way will be used,” added Lagarde.
Yellen, like Lagarde, points out crime
However, it does not completely reject digital currencies. She definitely sees the place for this in the future, also at the ECB. She said the pandemic had pushed economies towards faster digital adoption. There could be a digital euro currency in about four years. This thesis was recently given a boost by a ruling by the European Court of Justice on the restriction of cash.
Recently, the new US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also pointed out criminal activities involving cryptocurrencies. At a ministry innovation conference, Yellen warned that cyberattacks and crimes related to digital currencies would increase.
” Misuse of cryptocurrencies and virtual assets is also a growing problem. I see the promise of these new technologies, but I also see the reality: cryptocurrencies have been used to launder the profits of online drug dealers; they were a tool for financing terrorism.
Nonetheless, like the ECB President Lagarde, Yellen does not reject digital currencies in principle. The US Treasury Secretary praises the private sector, which invests “enormous resources” in order to prevent evil actors from misusing existing technologies.





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