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Bitcoin Isn’t a Currency nor A Payment Instrument: Ukraine’s Central Bank

Last Updated March 4, 2021 5:00 PM
Samburaj Das
Last Updated March 4, 2021 5:00 PM

The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has revealed its stance on digital currencies like bitcoin, at a time when it’s developing a legal and regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies in the country.

The deputy head of Ukraine’s central bank, Oleg Chury, has revealed that the NBU will not recognize cryptocurrencies like bitcoin as currencies. The official was speaking at the Ukrainian Financial Forum when he also claimed that cryptocurrencies will not be recognized as a legal method of payment in Ukraine, unlike Japan.

In quotes reported by regional publication FinClub , the central bank official stated:

We can say that this is definitely not a currency, because there is no central issuer. And we cannot recognize this as a means of payment.

The central banker went on to add that decentralized cryptocurrencies aren’t seen as a threat to central banks while claiming that they are susceptible to fraud.

“World regulators are not concerned with any threat of crypto currency because of their small volume, they are only concerned with the fact that people can lose money due to fraud (by investing in them),” Chury added.

The statements are similar to those made by JP Morgan chief executive and noted bitcoin critic Jamie Dimon, who has frequently stated that “the bigger [cryptocurrencies] get, the more governments are going to close them down.”

In November 2015, Dimon said bitcoin “is like 2 billion or 3 billion” dollars and compared it to JP Morgan which he claimed ‘moves 6 trillion dollars a day’. “So, you’ve got to [put it in perspective],” Dimon stated, belittling bitcoin. The total market cap of all mined bitcoins is currently worth over $62 billion . If bitcoin were summed up as an M1 metric (narrow money or liquid money supply), it would rank at #46 on the global list between Israel and the Philippines, according to data  from the CIA.

Chury’s comments come at a time when the National Bank of Ukraine publicly revealed it was working toward developing a definitive framework for the legality and regulatory future of cryptocurrencies in the country.

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