US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin Bashes Bitcoin Claiming Its Future Looks Bleak

U.S. Treasury Secretary Mnuchin has taken his anti-crypto advocacy to a new level by saying he won’t be loading up on Bitcoin for the next 10 years.

In an interview with CNBC’s Squawk Box on Wednesday, Secretary Mnuchin waved off suggestions that he would be a bitcoin billionaire in the next few years. The U.S. Treasury Secretary retorted:

“I won’t be talking about bitcoin in 10 years, I can assure you that. I would bet even in five or six years [that] I won’t be talking about bitcoin as Treasury Secretary, I’ll have other priorities. I can assure you I’ll personally not be loaded up on bitcoin.”

Although the remarks by the ex-Goldman Sachs investment banker do not divulge his specific regulatory policies, the secretary has previously said that cryptos are a risk to the financial system. Therefore, the remarks shouldn't come as a surprise to the crypto worshippers.

According to Mnuchin regulators are likely to roll out new crypto rules and guidelines. The move is to ensure that digital currencies negative effect of the financial system is mitigated.

"I can assure you I will personally not be loaded up on bitcoin" in 10 years, says Treasury Secretary Mnuchin #bitcoin pic.twitter.com/0J5acWQwRO

— Squawk Box (@SquawkCNBC) July 24, 2019

The sudden interest in the cryptocurrency space by the Trump administration comes as a surprise to make crypto enthusiasts. The grand entrance of Facebook into the industry with a proposed digital currency (Libra) mostly likely poked the sleeping bear.

The secretary said that the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) are working together to come up with guidance that will hold cryptos to the highest standards. He said:

“We are looking at all of the crypto assets. We’re are going to make sure we have a unified approach and my guess is that there are going to be more regulations that come out from these agencies.”

Bitcoin Bad, Dollar Good

Over the past few weeks, the U.S. Treasury secretary has had nothing complimentary to say about Bitcoin or cryptos in general. Secretary Mnuchin has even gone as far as to liken bitcoin with Swiss-numbered accounts.

The secretary has falsely claimed that fiat currencies are not vehicles for money laundering saying:

“There are billions of dollars of transactions going on in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for illicit purposes.”

However, various media commentators and industry analysts have questioned the treasury’s secretary’s remarks wondering how money launderers operated before Bitcoin was created. The CEO of research firm Elliptic, Tom Robinson, in an OpEd for VentureBeat reminded Mnuchin that, “Less than 0.5 percent of bitcoin transactions are used for illicit purchases.”

CoinDesk reports that although Mnuchin believes that the crypto industry has no future, he continues to vouch for the US dollar and believes that it will still be the dominant reserve currency in the world. He expressed his resolve to ensure the US dollar does not lose its position in the world saying:

“I think the dollar is the reserve currency in the world. It’s in our interest. We want to maintain it.”

What do you think about Mnuchin saying he won’t be loaded up on BTC in the next 10 years? Let us know in the comments section.