While Argentinians continue to battle hyperinflation, the government continues to have conflicting views about Bitcoin adoption.
Argentina’s President, Alberto Fernandez, has said that he sees no reason to oppose crypto, but in contrast to his candor, the director of the country’s Central Bank, Miguel Pesce, is preparing for a crackdown on the sector.
Already in April, Argentina’s Central Bank directed local banks to scrutinize clients who own cryptocurrencies and engage in cryptocurrency-related business or trading activities, but just last month, National Congressman José Luis Ramón introduced a bill that would allow for Bitcoin salaries and accelerate the country’s adoption process.
The President is becoming more receptive to the concept. Fernandez expressed his openness to crypto in an interview, saying that there is no need to fight the flow. “I don’t want to go too far out on a limb – but there is no reason to say ‘no’,” Fernandez added, pointing out the ‘hedging’ benefits of Bitcoin adoption, despite Argentina’s strict currency regulations, which pushed many Argentinians to crypto mining.
“They say the advantage is that the inflationary effect is largely nullified,” the President said, adding that he is also open to the concept of a Central Bank digital currency (CBDC). Fernandez, on the other hand, remained cautious, concluding that it is still too early to plunge headfirst into the adoption process.
“There is caution because of how unfamiliar it is, and because it is hard to understand how this fortune materializes. Many people in the world have these concerns, and that is why the project, or the system, has not yet expanded. But it is something to consider,”
A slightly altered perspective
“We are going to control the confluence of Bitcoin with the payment system and the exchange market,” the current head of Argentina’s Central Bank said at a digital financial conference hosted by the Argentine Institute of Finance Executives (IAEF).
According to Pesce, Bitcoin “was developed as a replacement transaction mechanism for money in which the state did not have a part,” the cryptocurrency “is not a financial asset since it neither underpins nor generates any return.”
He stated that “the Central Bank is unaffected by the fact that these kinds of instruments may be utilized for transactions,” while emphasizing the authority’s primary concern: that cryptocurrencies be “used to achieve excessive profits on unsuspecting or inexperienced individuals.”
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