Its a historic week for bitcoin, but that hasnt stopped global central bankers from issuing a round of warnings about the utility and inherent volatility of crypto assets.<\/p>\n
RiksbankGov. Stefan Ingves said that doubts remain about the staying power of bitcoin BTCUSD, -0.19%, the worlds most prominent digital asset, if it isnt government backed.<\/p>\n
Private money usually collapses sooner or later, Ingves said at a banking conference in Stockholm recently.<\/p>\n
The central banker said that regulatory scrutiny on crypto, including bitcoin and Ether ETHUSD, -1.02% trading on the Ethereum blockchain, will likely increase as the popularity of digital assets grows. <\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Bank of Mexico Gov. Alejandro Diaz de Leon on Thursday separately said that bitcoin is a tool for barter rather than legal tender and described it as a poor store of value, citing its wild price swings. <\/p>\n
Whoever receives bitcoin in exchange for a good or service, we believe that is more akin to bartering because that person is exchanging a good for a good, but not really money for a good, Reuters quoted Diaz de Leon as saying.<\/p>\n
People will not want their purchasing power, their salary to go up or down 10% from one day to another. You dont want that volatility for purchasing power. In that sense, it is not a good safeguard of value, the Mexican central banker said. <\/p>\n
His comments come after bitcoin formally became legal tender in El Salvador, which has been viewed by many enthusiasts as a watershed moment for crypto. <\/p>\n
Read: El Salvadors bitcoin experiment splits crypto community amid major price decline<\/p>\n
Check out: Bitcoin Day in El Salvador ushers in the promise and peril of crypto<\/p>\n
However, that moment failed to dull the choppy trade that has come to be associated with bitcoin and its ilk. <\/p>\n
Bitcoin hit a near-term peak of $53,000 on Monday but preceded to tumble to an intrasession nadir on Tuesday at around $43,000, according to CoinDesk.<\/p>\n
Diaz de Leonsaid that Mexico wouldnt be seeking to adopt crypto similar to El Salvador, given what he described as its flaws. <\/p>\n
On Thursday, bitcoin was changing hands at $46,696.80 on CoinDesk, up 0.9% but well off its recent peak, while Ether was trading at $3,471.13, down 1.1%. <\/p>\n
Stocks were also trading under pressure, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.43%, the S&P 500 SPX, -0.46% and the Nasdaq Composite indexes COMP, -0.25% all ending lower.<\/p>\n
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More here: Its a historic week for bitcoin, but that hasnt stopped global central bankers from issuing a round of warnings about the utility and inherent volatility of crypto assets. RiksbankGov. Stefan Ingves said that doubts remain about the staying power of bitcoin BTCUSD, -0.19%, the worlds most prominent digital asset, if it isnt government backed Continue reading
\nBitcoin could collapse and isn't 'a good safeguard of value,' warn global central bankers - MarketWatch<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"