Billionaire investor and deal investor Tim Draper has reportedly aimed to convince the Sri Lankan Government to adopt Bitcoin (BTC). Nonetheless, the governor of the Monetary Authority of Sri Lanka rejected his recommendation, emphasizing: “Adoption of 100 percent Bitcoin (BTC) won’t be a Sri Lanka reality ever.”
Tim Draper Suggests Sri Lanka Adopts Bitcoin
Billionaire investor and deal investor Tim Draper reportedly tried to convince the Sri Lankan Government and monetary authority to adopt Bitcoin (BTC) during his visit to the south Asian country earlier this coming week to shoot an episode of his “Meet the Drapers” Television show with local entrepreneurs.
The billionaire met with Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe Tuesday to pitch Bitcoin (BTC) adoption, Bloomberg informed, adding that he then visited the Sri Lankan monetary authority the following day with the same pitch.
Wearing a Bitcoin (BTC) tie, Draper was quoted as saying: “I come to the monetary authority with decentralized currency.” Nonetheless, Sri Lankan Monetary Authority Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe replied:
We don’t accept … Adoption of 100 percent Bitcoin (BTC) won’t be a Sri Lanka reality ever.
Sri Lanka’s fuel and food shortages led to riots a year ago. The president at the time fled the debt-ridden country and thereafter resigned. Sri Lanka’s key inflation price stood at 54.2 percent in January, and a year ago the economy contracted by 8%, the governor detailed.
Draper informed the monetary authority chief that he is “a little worried about you guys,” elaborating:
Have you seen Sri Lanka in the news? It’s known as the corruption financial resources. A country known for corruption will be able to keep perfect records with the adoption of bitcoin.
The billionaire VC continued to try to convince Weerasinghe during their 30-minute meeting. He even cited El Salvador, which became the 1st country to adopt Bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender alongside the United States dollar in September 2021.
“Does the administration have the guts to do it?” Draper requested the Sri Lankan monetary authority governor as he pushed for Bitcoin (BTC) adoption. “What’s the advantage of having your own currency?”
Nonetheless, Weerasinghe replied:
We don’t want to make the crisis worse by introducing bitcoin.
Draper has pitched Bitcoin (BTC) adoption to plenty of other countries and received better responses than he did from the Sri Lankan Government and monetary authority. The tiny island country of Palau in the Pacific, for instance, made him the founding resident of its digital-residency program.
The billionaire has long been positive tendency about Bitcoin (BTC) owing to the cryptocurrency’s trait as a hedge against inflation. In November a year ago, he predicted that BTC should hit $250K by mid-2023.
The Monetary Authority of Sri Lanka has cautioned the public plenty of times about the dangers of investing in digital currencies. In July a year ago, the monetary authority was released a notice warning that virtual currencies “are considered as unregulated financial instruments and have no regulatory oversight or safeguards relating to their usage in Sri Lanka.” The authority also mentioned that it “has not given any license or authorization to any entity or company to operate schemes involving virtual currencies, including cryptocurrencies.”
Do you believe Sri Lanka should adopt Bitcoin (BTC) as billionaire Tim Draper has suggested? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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