A Bitcoin developer, Sjors Provoost, said that the European Central Bank (ECB) should abort its proposed digital euro. Sjors said that the bank had no idea of what it was doing in terms of digital currency development. Provoost made the assertion in a series of posts on May 23 , where he said that the bank’s effort at CBDCs is at best, a half-baked experimentation.
Provoost made reference to a document published by the ECB in 2020 titled “Digital euro experimentation scope and key learnings”. According to him, the document can best be described as a hackathon for central banks. Provoost, who is also the author of Bitcoin: A Work In Progress said that,
“They had no idea what they’re doing, and still don’t.”
He highlighted a section of the document where the ECB said that blockchain privacy adjustment is a simple matter.
The ECB President On Bitcoin
Provoost criticism of the ECB comes days after the bank’s president, Christine Lagarde, said that cryptocurrencies are “worth nothing”. Lagarde emphasized the need to have it regulated in the interest of investors. The president, who made her stance on cryptocurrencies known during a talk show, College Tour, based her assertion on the fact that digital currencies are not based on something and not backed by assets.
“I’m concerned about those people who think it’s going to be a reward, who have no understanding of the risks, who will lose it all, and who will be terribly disappointed, which is why I believe that should be regulated,” she said.
Shifting Privacy Policy
In his criticism of the ECB stance on digital currencies. Provoost said that the bank wants to gain public acceptance of its stance by pretending that it cares about people’s privacy. He said that this is contrary to his findings in the ECB digital assets document. According to the developer,
“It makes it abundantly clear that ECB wants mass surveillance, and will only allow privacy in ways that are compatible with such mass surveillance. Which of course is impossible, just admit it.”
Provoost says that there is a serious problem if the ECB proposal represents their view on “digital payment privacy” since it reeks of hypocrisy, deceit and incompetence.
A Digital Euro Nonsense
ECB pro tips:
1. Abort this complex and dangerous Digital Euro nonsense
2. Incrementally make the current banking system more private, especially for online payments
a) allow banks to issue Chaumian cash
b) chill on the AML/KYC
3. Leave Bitcoin alonehttps://t.co/sfmmp21xvL— Sjors Provoost (@provoost) May 23, 2022
Provoost said that in his professional view, that the complex euro digital currency should be discarded. He also said that the bank should focus on making traditional online banking more private since they highlighted privacy as one of the merits of the digital euro. On a final note, Provoost said that the ECB should “leave Bitcoin alone”.
