Sweden’s Central Bank Chief Wants 'as Little Bitcoin as Possible' in Country's Financial System: Bloomberg
“It’s an instrument that is impossible to value, and in practice it’s based on pure speculation," Riksbank Governor Erik Thedeen said.
Mar 12, 2024 at 2:13 p.m. UTC:format(webp)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/coindesk/YIKBD5UKUFA3TD5ZJTD47XHZPU.jpg)
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- The governor of Sweden's central bank said he wants nothing to do with bitcoin.
- "Right now there's a surge, but we have seen the value collapsing not long ago," Riksbank Governor Erik Thedeen said.
"It's an instrument that is impossible to value, and in practice it's based on pure speculation," Riksbank Governor Erik Thedeen said to reporters after a parliamentary hearing on monetary policy.
Thedeen cited the collapse of crypto exchanges to support his position at a time when the cryptocurrency market, led by bitcoin, is experiencing a record-breaking bullish run.
"We have seen exchanges in the U.S. collapse and individuals losing money," he said. "Right now there's a surge, but we have seen the value collapsing not long ago, and it is important to warn people who believe there is no limit and that there's free money to be made."
In 2022, Sweden led European Union regulators in calling for a ban on crypto mining because of energy concerns. The regulators were worried renewable energy will be channeled towards crypto mining instead of national grids at a time when the EU's energy supply was in crisis. In April 2023, Sweden abolished tax incentives for data centers – including the bitcoin mining industry – leading to a threatened 6,000% increase in energy taxes.
UPDATE (March 12, 14:28 UTC): Replaces lead image.
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