On the 19th of September 2022, Patrick Njoroge, the ninth governor of the Central Bank of Kenya, stated that he has been receiving pressure from cryptocurrency enthusiasts to convert the country’s reserves to Bitcoin.
Additionally, he implied that legislators might be under duress to sway the legislative process to the benefit of adopting cryptocurrencies. He emphasized his negative stance on the adoption of Bitcoin by stating he should be put in Kamiti, a maximum security prison if it ever happens.
Njoroge added that the nation could choose to use cryptos mainly if they provided a solution to a specific issue. He stated that due to the volatility of Bitcoin, converting reserves into it would be risky.
Four million Kenyan crypto investors lost money due to continuous trades at lower prices in the market for digital assets, and this activity brought attention to the magnitude of the risks.
While there aren’t any extensive laws to caution the crypto industry, the Central Bank of Kenya has already cautioned residents against using cryptocurrencies, noting the associated risks.
In this instance, the organisation has sent letters to regional banks advising them to be careful when interacting with cryptocurrencies or businesses that engage in virtual currencies.
The central bank governor further added that bitcoins are not better vehicles for payments and transactions; the virtual assets are not more secure than the centralized funds in the banks, and they cannot solve the country’s problems.
Several people who supported the notion of the Governor claimed that it is dense to place a country’s reserve on an asset that has no intrinsic value or backing from any authority. Another issue raised was the inability to hold any form of authority accountable during financial problems.
