There’s a murmuring tale in the Land of the Kiwis, where the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) prefers to let the crypto beast run wild with vigilant eyes on, rather than taming it with regulatory chains, it announced last week. “Not all that glitters is gold,” as Ian Woolford, Director of Money and Cash at the RBNZ said, pointing the unconvincing essence of issues raised by crypto-assets that don’t fall within agency’s boundaries. Yet, with the matters of consumer and investor protection or potential commercial or regulatory barriers to entry, he expressed a notable sense of gravity.
Amid fifty differing perspectives on cryptocurrencies and stablecoins from a diverse set of stakeholders, the Kiwi bank holds its stand, marred by a misty veil of uncertainty. The bank started a consultative journey in December 2022 by initiating an Issues Paper on Private Innovation aimed towards scrutinizing the volatile landscape of the crypto-asset market.
This vagueness isn’t without its own silver lining as there’s a shared belief that every new venture should be approached with a well-grounded caution – a belief the RBNZ keeps close to its heart. For this reason, the bank decides to withhold any proposal on regulatory response.
However, the plot thickens with crypto-assets possibly donning the role of money – an interesting subplot caught the central bank’s attention. The ember of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) flickers within RBNZ’s plans although the bank’s position is muddled. The official announcement resonated with ambiguity saying, “If we do introduce a CBDC, this would not be to displace cash” – a sign that physical cash would still hold its royal place.
Bringing some familiarity to this change, the island nation has witnessed Binance entering the field as a financial service provider while Huobi bows out of the derivatives trading services. This narrative of cryptocurrencies in New Zealand is tickled with scepticism yet breathed to life with inevitable practicality. As the crypto wheels continue to turn, only time will tell how these dynamics shift and shape the New Zealand’s future of finance.
Source: Coindesk
