Pakistan’s Central Bank Sees Few Good Use Cases for Crypto Citing ‘a Lot of Misuses’ Worldwide – Regulation Bitcoin News

Pakistan’s central bank does not believe there are many applications for crypto. However, the regulator cites “a lot of misuses” of cryptocurrency around the world, “including human rights violations, trafficking of people, money laundering, and many other things.”

Pakistani Central Bank Governor’s Stance on Crypto

The governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Reza Baqir, talked about cryptocurrency during a panel discussion at the 13th Karachi Litera­ture Festival Sunday, Dawn newspaper reported.

According to the Pakistani central bank Governor, crypto does not have good uses cases.

If we take a look at crypto’s value proposition right now, it is clear that the only cases being considered are those of exchanges.

SBP Governor continued to discuss the potential risks of cryptocurrencies.

Noting that “There is no way that the regulator or a law enforcement agency has visibility on who is doing transactions and for what purpose,” he opined:

There are many misuses of money around the globe. [of cryptocurrency]These include human rights violations, people trafficking, money laundering and other crimes.

Baqir said that Pakistan’s finances have been used for laundering money and financing terrorism.

The central bank governor said that bitcoin should be allowed to be traded and used in other countries.

He explained: “Every new thing has some benefits and some risks … It’s a policymaker’s job to make an assessment of the balance … in particular, make a judgement whether the benefits outweigh the risks with regards to the use of cryptocurrencies in Pakistan.” However, Baqir said last month that the potential risks of cryptocurrency far outweigh its benefits.

Meanwhile, he believes that distributed ledger or blockchain technology is “absolutely useful” and has the potential to solve many problems the world is facing right now.

The Pakistani government currently examines whether cryptocurrency regulation should be implemented. The recommendations of a high-ranking interministerial commission that is supposed to advise on the legality and regulation of cryptocurrency under Pakistani law were rejected by this committee. It submitted its January report to the Sindh High Court, recommending that crypto be banned completely.

However, Pakistan’s minister for science and technology, Shibli Faraz, said in the same month that the government intends to “regularize” cryptocurrency in the country. According to him, the State Bank of Pakistan’s finance ministry and Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan have been working together on a plan.

What do you think about the SBP governor’s comments? Please leave your comments below.

Kevin Helms

Kevin is a graduate of Austrian Economics. He discovered Bitcoin in 2011, and has been an advocate ever since. He is interested in Bitcoin security and open-source software, network effects, and the intersection of cryptography and economics.