Portugal central bank: Bitcoin is not a currency

With the process of different central banks around the world choosing their own position on cryptocurrency, the central bank of Portugal decides not to recognize Bitcoin as a legitimate currency. As stated by the leader of this bank, Helder Rosalino, Bitcoin is not a tool for savings and cannot be used for credits, while currencies issued by central banks have both two properties.

Like many other cryptocurrency skeptics, Mr. Rosalino sees benefits in blockchain without Bitcoin: he calls it a fantastic technology that helps to cut the middleman a lot, but once again tells that blockchain-based cryptocurrencies still pose risks. As he explains, they can be speculative instruments and too volatile, and the law enforcement of Portugal, of course, has a thing or two to say about how money launderers and drug lords use the latest fintech achievements.

However, the leader of the central bank of Portugal says the bank is still assessing fintech possible benefits.

Neighbouring Spain with rioting Catalonia has had a fintech-related problem recently, with the government of Catalonia demanding full state independence and even threatening to issue its own cryptocurrency, which could have harmed the Spanish market. Local reports suggested they even contacted Vitalik Buterin and he offered to launch an ICO, but it was quite obviously a fake story, lately confirmed as fake by Buterin himself.