Crypto crashes, bankruptcies spark calls for tighter regulations even as users demand less rules
channelnewsasia.comWASHINGTON: Debate is raging between cryptocurrency users who want less rules and greater fiscal autonomy, and politicians who feel more oversight is needed to shield them from the volatility of a decentralised system.The crypto space is on tenterhooks, as it waits to see which way the legislative winds will blow, said observers.
This comes as a series of recent crashes and bankruptcies in the crypto sector sparked calls for tighter regulation in the industry.
Crypto fever, with a market cap of more than US$800 billion globally last year, has gripped the United States, infiltrating the world of sport, art and politics.
Studies have shown that roughly three-quarters of all people who have ever bought bitcoin have ended up worse off.“Cryptocurrencies are speculation,” said Dr Nicholas Weaver, a lecturer at the University of California, Berkeley’s International Computer Science Institute. “The only value in a cryptocurrency is what somebody else will pay more for later.
