‘Stablecoins Could Hamper Monetary Policy’ – Swiss National Bank President

Stablecoins hamper monetary policy

Swiss National Bank President Thomas Jordan has said that stablecoins pegged to foreign currencies could hamper Switzerland’s monetary policy.

Jordan spoke at the University of Basel on September 5th 2019 saying that he is convinced that cryptocurrencies are of limited use as payment instruments as they are subject to major fluctuations.

Jordan said:

“Crypto tokens are more like speculative investment instruments than ‘good’ money in terms of their characteristics. Users typically describe money as ‘good’ if it has a stable value over time, is broadly accepted, and enables efficient payments. Given these parameters, it seems unlikely that crypto tokens will be widely used as money in Switzerland.”

Jordan on stablecoins pegged to foreign currencies establishing themselves in Switzerland explained:

“If stable coins pegged to foreign currencies were to establish themselves in Switzerland, the effectiveness of our monetary policy could be impaired.”

He added that a Swiss franc stablecoin would have “no immediate impact on the effectiveness of our monetary policy,” but said that giving the general public access to a central bank-issued digital currency could pose a threat to financial stability.

Leave a Comment