Regulators should be worried about Bitcoin, Goldman Sachs senior chairman says
In a recent interview on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Goldman Sachs senior chairman Lloyd Blankfein gave reasons why regulators should be worried about Bitcoin’s meteoric rise. According to him, regulators could have a hard time tracking illicit transactions.
Blankfein believes that the relatively anonymous nature of Bitcoin makes it a perfect tool for illicit financing. When asked about his views on Bitcoin going mainstream, he said:
It could work. But at the end of the day, currency should accomplish a couple of things. It’s a medium of exchange and a store of value. The store of value is a little bit tough, and as a medium of exchange, you don’t know whether or not you’re paying the North Koreans, or Al-Qaeda, or the revolutionary guard.
Blankfein is not the only one with such sentiments. Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, had earlier expressed similar fears noting that cryptocurrencies are a “particular concern” since they are mainly used for illicit financing.
Commenting further on the matter, Blankfein said that he would start arming himself to “deal with it [Bitcoin]” if he were a regulator. And this would entail restricting several fundamental features of Bitcoin. If such regulations are implemented, one would be left to wonder if the digital asset would still be alluring to investors and traders.
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