Cryptocurrencies and stablecoins are in the sights of the boss of the US financial regulator, but he currently does not have enough power to act effectively.
While crypto-currencies are an asset that is of increasing interest to individuals, companies, entrepreneurs, certain financial institutions and even states, they are still despised by many traditional financial players.
Historically, private currencies do not work well
And it’s the turn of Gary Gensler, a former investment banker and now head of the US federal financial market regulator and supervisor (SEC), to attack crypto. currencies.
Asked by the Washington Post, he explained that he did not believe in the viability of forms of private money, believing that most of those that are currently being created will undoubtedly disappear. He draws a parallel with the American banks which had launched between 1830 and 1860 their own notes, thus each creating their own currency. A model that quickly ran out of steam.
As a reminder, any cryptocurrency that is not issued by an official public financial body is considered a private cryptocurrency, even if it does not belong to anyone per se. A private crypto therefore encompasses both Bitcoin and the Paris Saint-Germain Fan Token.
Stablecoins compared to casino chips
Gary Gensler then evokes the particular case of stablecoins, these crypto-currencies which have the particularity of being much more stable and less volatile because their value is associated with that of a traditional currency, such as the euro for example. One of the best known is Tether.
According to him, these stablecoins “currently act almost like poker chips in the casino”. The fact that platforms are not subject to the same laws and protection measures as conventional money is a problem according to Gensler.
It should also be noted that the SEC is preparing a report under the supervision of the US Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, to propose a regulation of stablecoins. He also asks the executive and the American legislature to give more power to the SEC in order to set up a system of control over these currencies.