Topic: [2017-12-13] Lowe Slams Bitcoin But E-dollar Could Come (Read 822 times)
These comments from a guy working for a country's central bank are all symptoms that he can already feel the disrupting power of Bitcoin. Why connect Bitcoin to criminals alone? Is that not like looking at a glass as half-empty rather than hall-full? I am sure he has not really researched well on Bitcoin and just reacting based on what he heard and seen on the mainstream media. Of course, Bitcoin can be used (and most probably being utilized) by many criminals but the same thing can also be true with the fiat money. In fact, most of the criminals activities are still done unanimously using the fiat money. And if I am a terrorist, I would never use Bitcoin since the transaction can be traced in the distributed ledger...it is not completely anonymous unlike if you have to hand the fiat money physically to someone...there is no record whatsoever with that way. I am glad that Bitcoin is now legal in Australia though. Oh, before I forgot, any country can introduce their own coin but the question is: Will it be another excited thing to get into or will it be another boring project from the government? I know that answer to that.
Reserve Bank of Australia governor Philip Lowe thinks bitcoin is mostly attractive to criminals and speculators but has acknowledged there could one day be an electronic Aussie dollar based on similar technology.
Dr Lowe on Wednesday said unregulated cryptocurrency was attractive to black market operators and that the central bank was not convinced the time is right to issue an electronic dollar to operate in tandem with physical banknotes.
But a blockchain-based so-called eAUD could eventually lead to more efficient, lower-cost business processes and payments, Dr Lowe said.
"It is possible that the RBA might, in time, issue a new form of digital money - a variation on exchange settlement accounts - perhaps using distributed ledger technology," Dr Lowe said in a speech to the Australian Payment Summit in Sydney.
"The case for doing this has not yet been established but we are open to the idea."
The eAUD would be used in specific settlement systems but, while bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies and tokens on a public ledger are mined, the dollar would still be backed by the central bank.
"It is certainly possible that this type of system could lead to more efficient, lower-cost business processes and payments," Dr Lowe said.
"My working hypothesis here is that such a case could develop, although we need to work through a range of complex operational and policy questions."
Dr Lowe said the use of privately issued electronic tokens representing dollars was feasible, but history showed that people prefer to hold centrally backed currency in periods of uncertainty or stress.
"It is hard to see them being issued as cryptocurrency tokens under a bitcoin-style protocol, with no central entity standing behind the liability," Dr Lowe said.
"So, while a privately issued eAUD is conceivable, experience cautions that there are significant difficulties and dangers associated with privately issued fiat money."
Dr Lowe repeated the claim made by many financial institutions that bitcoin - which has increased in price from about $US800 at the start of 2017 to more than $US17,000 - was mostly attractive to criminals and speculators.
"When thought of purely as a payment instrument, it seems more likely to be attractive to those who want to make transactions in the black or illegal economy, rather than everyday transactions," Dr Lowe said.
"So, the current fascination with these currencies feels more like a speculative mania than it has to do with their use as an efficient and convenient form of electronic payment."
Source: https://www.sbs.com.au/news/lowe-slams-bitcoin-but-e-dollar-could-come
Dr Lowe on Wednesday said unregulated cryptocurrency was attractive to black market operators and that the central bank was not convinced the time is right to issue an electronic dollar to operate in tandem with physical banknotes.
But a blockchain-based so-called eAUD could eventually lead to more efficient, lower-cost business processes and payments, Dr Lowe said.
"It is possible that the RBA might, in time, issue a new form of digital money - a variation on exchange settlement accounts - perhaps using distributed ledger technology," Dr Lowe said in a speech to the Australian Payment Summit in Sydney.
"The case for doing this has not yet been established but we are open to the idea."
The eAUD would be used in specific settlement systems but, while bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies and tokens on a public ledger are mined, the dollar would still be backed by the central bank.
"It is certainly possible that this type of system could lead to more efficient, lower-cost business processes and payments," Dr Lowe said.
"My working hypothesis here is that such a case could develop, although we need to work through a range of complex operational and policy questions."
Dr Lowe said the use of privately issued electronic tokens representing dollars was feasible, but history showed that people prefer to hold centrally backed currency in periods of uncertainty or stress.
"It is hard to see them being issued as cryptocurrency tokens under a bitcoin-style protocol, with no central entity standing behind the liability," Dr Lowe said.
"So, while a privately issued eAUD is conceivable, experience cautions that there are significant difficulties and dangers associated with privately issued fiat money."
Dr Lowe repeated the claim made by many financial institutions that bitcoin - which has increased in price from about $US800 at the start of 2017 to more than $US17,000 - was mostly attractive to criminals and speculators.
"When thought of purely as a payment instrument, it seems more likely to be attractive to those who want to make transactions in the black or illegal economy, rather than everyday transactions," Dr Lowe said.
"So, the current fascination with these currencies feels more like a speculative mania than it has to do with their use as an efficient and convenient form of electronic payment."
Source: https://www.sbs.com.au/news/lowe-slams-bitcoin-but-e-dollar-could-come
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