Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey believes that no existing cryptocurrency will last. The head of the UK central bank spoke about the design, governance and arrangements of a “permanent digital currency” and said: “I do not believe that cryptocurrencies as they were originally formulated are.”
Andrew Bailey, head of the Bank of England, doubts that existing cryptocurrencies will last
Bank of England (BOE) Governor Andrew Bailey spoke about cryptocurrency on the World Economic Forum’s online agenda in Davos on Monday. In a panel titled “Resetting Digital Currencies”, he said that digital innovations in payments “stay here”.
Regarding cryptocurrencies, however, the head of the UK central bank said:
Have we come across what I would call the design, governance and arrangements for a permanent digital currency? No, I don’t think we’re still there, honestly. I don’t think cryptocurrencies are as they were originally formulated.
The Governor of the Bank of England added: “The whole question of people having the assurance that their payments will be made in a stable value ultimately has to do with what is known as fiat currency, which has a link with the state.”
Bailey noted that this can be organized in a number of ways, with innovation coming into play, using stablecoins and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) as examples. Like other central banks, the UK central bank has been considering issuing its own digital central bank currency.
Bailey also pointed out that the adequate level of data protection for digital currencies is likely to be hotly debated. He was quoted as saying, “This is a big question affecting the landscape, the whole question of a data protection standard for transactions in every form of digital currency and where the public interest lies.”
Godfrey Bloom, a British politician who served in the European Parliament from 2004 to 2014, commented on Bailey’s crypto remarks. He tweeted:
Bitcoin is beating terror into the hearts of central bankers. Every time you buy bitcoin or gold coins, they know it’s another nail in their corrupt coffin.
What do you think of Bailey’s view on cryptocurrencies? Let us know in the comments below.
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