Indonesian central bank assumes a CBDC will be more credible than crypto

Governments and their central banks around the world are seeing the rise of crypto and know that they need to do something about it. The Indonesian central bank is considering developing its own CBDC in what it sees as the “fight against crypto”.

The old established monetary system is being overtaken and radically updated by the innovations brought by the crypto/blockchain industry. However, those that run the world’s finances are not going to take this lying down, and central banks across the globe are looking to build out their own digital assets in a race for supremacy.

In an article in the Times of India today, it is reported that Bank Indonesia (the central bank of the country) is considering the development of a CBDC (central bank digital currency) in order to “fight the use of crypto”.

One of the assistant governors of the bank backed this statement by commenting that “people would find CBDC more credible than crypto”.

Now this is understandable if you are part of the traditional system, and you have a job to protect, or you read mainstream media, or just haven’t researched crypto. 

However, no matter if you are in the trad financial system or not, CBDCs are a tool that can be used to control citizens right down to the individual level. There is no point in a government promising that this won’t happen - the fact that they can be used, and most likely would be used, ought to worry anybody that believes in personal freedom.

Another assistant at Bank Indonesia, Juda Agung, was quoted as saying in the Times of India article that the 3 reasons for rolling out a central bank digital currency were:

• “To use digital currency (CBDC) as legal tender to fight cryptocurrency

• One of the tools to fight cryptocurrency

• CBDC would be part of an effort to address the use of crypto in financial transactions”

Agung doesn’t really leave any room for doubt about his anti-crypto feelings. However, it is wondered how a CBDC would be able to compete, given that it is only a digital representation of all the monetary debt that each country has accrued so far.

The only reason CBDCs could be allowed to thrive, is if they were used to complement the use of cryptocurrencies, or if you are on the other side of the fence, a country could just try and squash the crypto with heavy regulation or even an all out ban, as is the case with China.

It appears that maybe Indonesia might follow the second path. Islamic scholars in the country have already forbidden the use of crypto, declaring it “Haram”. 

However, for Bank of Indonesia officials to state that a CBDC will be more credible than crypto will rely on them having a lot of control over the country’s media. Stories that tarnish cryptocurrency and extol the virtues of CBDCs may keep a lot of the population in the dark as to what is really at stake.

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

* This article was originally published here