KUALA LUMPUR: Governments and regulators must accept cryptocurrencies, a form of digital asset that has skyrocketed in popularity over the past year or so,
as a natural progression of currencies.
Expressing the sentiment on the digital currency, Compliance Officers’ Networking Group (CONG) chairman V. Maslamani said there are still many different interpretation of the digital currency globally.
"JP Morgan Chase chief executive officer (CEO) Jamie Dimon had came out calling cryptocurrencies a fraud. Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft Corporation said cryptocurrencies is the future," he told reporters at the 9th International Conference on Financial Crime and Terrorism Financing (IFCTF2017), of which CONG is a joint organizer with Asian Institute of Finance (AIF).
"Bank Negara, which at had one point did not recognise cryptocurrencies, is in the process of deciding to whether or not officially recognise cryptocurrency and potentially coming up with guidelines by the end of this year for the country's approach towards investing in it. The world right now, is pretty much grappling with this (rise of cryptocurrencies)," Maslamani said.
He then explained that there will come to a point where Bank Negara will have to 'deal with it’.
"The use of cryptocurrencies in Malaysia right now is insignificant, but if it were come to 10 to 20 per cent of the currencies being used in the local economy, then Bank Negara have to deal with it,” said Maslamani, who is also the chief compliance officer for Al Rajhi Bank.
“I don't think that cryptocurrencies will become significant (in Malaysia) within the next 10 years because it can be used anonymously, therefore it doesn't command the respect of traditional currencies. Unless cryptocurrencies start being use in day to day purchases, its usage will remain insignificant.”
He then shared that cryptocurrencies can only become respectable and a more popular medium of trade only if it is regulated the way that traditional currencies are being regulated.
“This is all very new but I think that Bank Negara's willingness to even look at it and to potentially come up with guidelines is definitely a step in the right direction,” said Maslamani.
Bank Negara governor Tan Sri Muhammad Ibrahim had on Thursday said the central bank would make a decision on crytocurrencies the matter by the end of the year.
"The guidelines that we will be issuing before the end of the year will address issues in terms of registering the players, collecting data and ensuring that whatever they do will be transparent,” he said.
The central bank had in 2014 during former governor Tan Sri Zeti Akhtar Aziz's tenure issued a statement noting that bitcoin is not recognised as legal tender in Malaysia.
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