Kenyan central bank says converting country’s reserves to Bitcoin ‘madness’ – Africa Bitcoin News
Kenyan central bank governor Patrick Njoroge has described as “madness” the calls to convert Kenya’s reserves into bitcoin. He added that he would have to be out of his mind before agreeing to this. Njoroge argued that cryptocurrencies like bitcoin are not only volatile, but hardly solve any problem.
CBK Governor Says Converting Kenya’s Reserves To Bitcoin Deserves Jail Time
The governor of the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), Patrick Njoroge, has described the idea of putting the country’s reserves into bitcoin as “madness”. Njoroge, who was addressing recently elected members of Kenya’s Legislative Assembly, added that if it happened that he agrees to convert Kenya’s reserves into bitcoin, he should be jailed and the keys to his prison cell must be thrown away.
Under Njoroge’s leadership, the CBK has issued statements and advisories warning Kenyan residents against trading or investing in cryptocurrencies. For example, Bitcoin.com News reported in June 2022 that Njoroge, along with Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Deputy Governor Kingsley Obiora, had cited the volatility of cryptocurrencies as one of the reasons why they cannot become a widely used payment method.
Yet, despite Njoroge and CBK’s opposition, several studies have suggested that Kenyan citizens’ use of, or investment in, cryptocurrencies is growing. For example, peer-to-peer crypto exchange Paxful recently revealed that its users from the country had digital assets valued at $125 million during the first half of 2022.
Njoroge: No problems to be solved by cryptocurrencies
However, in a video recently uploaded on Youtube, Njoroge still questions the benefits of cryptocurrencies for the Kenyan economy. He said:
What problem do they solve in our economy? Are they better vehicles for let’s say payments, transactions? And the answer is no. Are they better in terms of… security more than a bank account? And the answer is no.
Furthermore, in his attempts to dissuade lawmakers from entertaining individuals who hype bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, Njoroge claimed that he too is being pressured.
“I know you’re under a lot of pressure from some of these people pushing these things. Because for them it’s good. I can assure you I have a lot of people pushing to put our reserves in bitcoin.”
However, Njoroge suggested that he would have to be out of his mind before accepting this call to convert reserves into bitcoin.
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