The International Monetary Fund believes that the popularity of cryptocurrencies is often associated with high inflation and unstable economic conditions.
Cryptocurrencies can be effectively used to circumvent capital restrictions, according to a report from the International Monetary Fund. Economists explained that the popularity of cryptocurrencies and stablecoins is high in countries with high inflation and unstable economies.
Restrictions require tracking transactions and identifying counterparties. At the same time, the use of cryptocurrencies reduces the effectiveness of such control, even with the participation of intermediaries such as crypto exchanges, according to the IMF. The organization emphasized that since 2020, trading in stablecoins pegged to the US dollar has increased markedly.
The “semi-legal” status of cryptocurrencies often serves to create a gray zone. At the same time, they can be traded without the involvement of intermediaries, and the lower the level of centralization, the less regulators have the ability for regulators to track transactions, economists say.
The authors of the report recommended that regulators clarify the status of cryptocurrencies, resort to international information exchange and develop models that will allow tracking risky transactions. At the same time, the IMF believes that cryptocurrencies will bear more and more risks of avoiding capital restrictions.
In April, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that Russia could try to circumvent sanctions with cryptocurrencies. The US does not see a large-scale circumvention of sanctions, but intends to make sure that the restrictions apply to cryptocurrencies as well.
