Bitcoin and Blockchain are technologies which have the potential to dramatically change the world. If Blockchain technology is deployed rapidly and effectively, we can bank the unbanked, automate contracts and even get Blockchains to work with the Internet of Things (IOT) to create a Blockchain of Things . Yet the primary use of Blockchains remains as a medium to validate cryptocurrency transactions. If that is the case, one must ask the question, how soon before central banks not only accept Blockchain but also start to have more acceptance of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies? After all it is the central banks who run most of the world’s currencies and they are the ones who stand to gain the most from this emerging technology. Central banks are toying with crypto It is no secret that central banks have been embracing Blockchain for a while. The Dutch central bank DNB has even run an extensive experiment on a cryptocurrency of its own. We also know that the Reserve Bank of India is toying with Blockchain and so is the Bank of England . Now however, central banks are going one step further and are thinking of printing their own Bitcoin. The Wall Street Journal recently reported on this development: “A central-bank-issued Bitcoin would be a means for policy makers to completely control the amount of money in the economy, much like full-reserve banking.” Banks stand to lose if central banks adopt digital money Imagine you could own money which is kept directly with the central bank. Or indeed you store money in a central bank coin wallet on your phone but the money is guaranteed by the central bank. Why would you use a retail bank anymore? At the moment paper money is usually held in savings or checking accounts for safekeeping […]
