FRANKFURT (Reuters) – European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde on Wednesday called for global regulation of Bitcoin, saying digital currency has been used for money laundering in some cases and that any loopholes need to be closed.
Bitcoin has come out of its niche in recent years and is now bought by ordinary people, investment funds and even large corporations. Some have even taken out loans to buy more of the cryptocurrency, whose value has increased nearly tenfold since March last year.
But its largely anonymous nature has raised concerns that it could be used for money laundering and other illegal activities.
“(Bitcoin) is an extremely speculative asset, which has carried out a fun business and an interesting and totally reprehensible money laundering activity,” Lagarde said in an interview at the Reuters Next conference.
Lagarde did not provide specific examples of money laundering cases, but said he understood that there were criminal investigations into illegal activities. She did not explain.
The cryptocurrency sector is still largely supervised or unregulated, although global standards have emerged in areas such as money laundering (AML).
He joined several regulators around the world in calling for the implementation of global rules for cryptocurrencies.
“There must be regulations. This must be applied and agreed … globally, because if there is an escape, the escape will be used, “Lagarde said.
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Reporting by Alessandra Galloni, Francesco Canepa and Balazs Koranyi; Edited by Catherine Evans