The president of the European Central Bank has criticized the Estonian government’s plan to launch a national cryptocurrency. The statements have implied that the European Union (EU) states will not be permitted to launch state-issued cryptocurrencies that compete with the Euro as the major currency within EU jurisdiction.
Estonia Had Planned to Launch a State-Administered National CryptocurrencyThe president of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, has rejected Estonia’s plans to launch a state-backed national cryptocurrency. Draghi has stated that “no member state can introduce its own currency. The currency of the eurozone is the euro.”
Last month, Estonia unveiled its plan to launch Estcoin, a state-backed national cryptocurrency. Estcoin would be centrally administered by the Republic of Estonia and launched as an ICO. Estonia also planned to make the cryptocurrency available and made available to any investor worldwide through its e-residency program. The Estcoin project has been closely evaluated and praised by Vitalik Buterin, the creator of Ethereum.
Peter Ehrlich of the European Central Bank is reported to have stated that “within the legal framework of the European Union, in all member states that, like Estonia, have introduced the single currency, only the euro is the legal tender and the monetary policy lies exclusively with the European Central Bank.” Daniel Heller of the Peterson Institute for International Economics has echoed this position, adding that EU obligations mandate that governments are unable to raise funds in any currency other than the euro. “If you sign up to the Eurozone, you sign up to the euro. Your financing is in euros”.
https://news.bitcoin.com/european-central-bank-criticizes-estonian-national-cryptocurrency-plans/
