Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller called crypto “nothing more than a speculative asset” and financial institutions dabbling in the sector had an extra duty to beware of fraud.
(Bloomberg) — Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller called crypto “nothing more than a speculative asset” and financial institutions dabbling in the sector had an extra duty to beware of fraud.
“Banks considering engaging in crypto-asset-related activities face a critical task to meet the ‘know your customer’ and ‘anti-money laundering’ requirements, which they in no way are allowed to ignore,” Waller said Friday in remarks prepared for delivery to a crypto conference in La Jolla, California.
“If people want to hold such an asset, then go for it. I wouldn’t do it, but I don’t collect baseball cards, either,” he said. “However, if you buy crypto-assets and the price goes to zero at some point, please don’t be surprised and don’t expect taxpayers to socialize your losses.”
Waller did not comment on the outlook for the US economy or monetary policy in the text of his speech at the conference, which was hosted by the the Global Interdependence Center.
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