The recently appointed deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), Li Bo, has recently spoken about the benefits of crypto as an investment tool. He also touched on the subject of regulatory uncertainty in the country when it comes to digital assets.
The comments were made at the Boao Forum yesterday. The head of PBoC revealed that the central bank still faced regulatory risks and mentioned its previous decision to ban initial coin offerings and crypto exchanges. He added that the PBoC wOULD “continue to maintain the current measures and practices”.
“We believe that Bitcoin and stablecoins are encrypted assets,” declared Li. “Encrypted assets are an investment option, not currency itself. It is an alternative investment, not currency itself. Therefore, we believe that crypto-assets should play a major role in the future, either as an investment tool or as an alternative investment.”
Li also specified that stablecoins that are being issued by private companies may need “stronger regulatory rules” than the ones for Bitcoin: “In the future, if any stablecoin hopes to become a widely used payment tool, it must be subject to strict supervision, just like banks or quasi-bank financial institutions are subject to strict supervision.”
Former PBoC president, Zhou Xiaochua, who was also present, wants a clear distinction between the “real economy” and the one in which digital currencies are involved:
“Finance is to serve the real economy. Whether it is digital currency or digital assets, it should be closely integrated with the real economy and serve the real economy.”
Li also mentioned that the PBoC is “focusing primarily on [the] domestic use” of the digital yuan and that cross-border payments may be allowed “in the long term.” The plan is for the CBDC to start being used at the 2022 Winter Olympic Games, which will take place in Beijing.