Central banks have "considered issuing cryptocurrencies"

Italy's economy minister has revealed that some central banks have considered issuing cryptocurrencies in order to avoid bubbles.

“Some central banks are looking into, and have even considered issuing, cryptocurrencies, to avoid bubbles that explode and do damage sooner or later,” Reuters reported Pier Carlo Padoan said today at an event in Milan.

Interest in cryptocurrencies like bitcoin has exploded over the past year, with bitcoin itself rising around 1,900 per cent over 2017 to a high of around $20,000. Analysts warned the digital currency was an unsustainable bubble. Its price has nearly halved from the all-time high achieved in December.

At the time of writing, bitcoin was trading at $10,266 a coin, having fallen after Facebook said it would ban adverts for bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies days after the UK's finance watchdog warned of digital currency scams online.

Regulators have struggled to keep up with the fast-paced world of digital currencies.

South Korea this week put new rules in place to ban the use of anonymous accounts for trading in an effort to crack down on fraud.

Let's block ads! (Why?)