Several countries seem worried about the growing power of cryptocurrencies. While France has just officially launched a mission chaired by a former governor of the Banque de France, the United States is also beginning to look into the matter.
A surprising announcement
Steven Mnuchin, the US Treasury Secretary, said he feared that cryptocurrencies would become "equivalents of numbered Swiss accounts". He is therefore afraid that digital currencies will be used for illicit purposes. The latter therefore recalled that the institution he currently chairs is responsible for verifying that cryptocurrencies do not serve criminal interests. Here is what the politician said during a discussion organized by the Economic Club of Washington:
"Bad people must not be able to use it to commit bad acts. "
A working group dedicated to the regulation of cryptocurrencies
The US Treasury Secretary has therefore made the decision to form a working group to regulate digital currencies in the United States. It may wish to toughen the regulatory framework and ensure Bitcoin in particular can not become the digital equivalent of numbered Swiss accounts.
These have long been used as an instrument of tax evasion by guaranteeing the anonymity of the holders of these accounts. So, of course, the situation has changed considerably. But US authorities fear that cryptocurrency will take over.
International concerns
It seems that cryptocurrency, especially Bitcoin, is used by criminals to buy drugs or weapons because of its anonymous nature. However, this is not entirely true because in reality, the Bitcoin BlockChain is not anonymous but pseudonymous. This means that it is possible to trace transactions and find the identity of the holder.
On the other hand, there are several anonymous currencies, like the Zcash for example. But this is far from the only concern of the US Treasury Secretary. Steven Mnuchin also spoke of the danger of speculation and the high volatility of the digital currency market.
"I want to make sure that savers who speculate on these currencies understand the risks. I worry that some may be paying for it. "
However, there is no question of issuing a digital dollar, at least for the moment. Crypto-currency is at the heart of controversy around the world, governments seem worried. To be continued.