Huw van Steenis Says Crypto is Worthless, Fails Basic Financial Tests
Legacy banks are reportedly not worried about crypto because it has no value and fails the fundamental tests of financial services. This is according to Huw Van Steenis, the senior adviser to Bank of England Governor Mark Carney.
Steenis says while traditional banks are always trying to fend off competition from new fintech platforms, he’s not losing any sleep over cryptocurrencies like bitcoin.
He said: “I’m not so worried about cryptocurrencies,” Van Steenis tells Bloomberg (video below). “They fail the basic tests of financial services.
They’re not a great unit of exchange. They don’t hold value, and they’re slower.”
Van Steenis said this from Davos, Switzerland, where the 2019 World Economic Forum is being held this week.