Irish Governor Compares Crypto to Gambling

Gabriel Makhlouf, the governor of The Central Bank of Ireland, said the financial institution is very concerned about the risks of unbacked cryptocurrencies. He also said such currencies have “no social value” and likened them to Ponzi schemes, urging lawmakers to ban the crypto advertising.

The governor said the financial stability risk is low, but the bank was still concerned about the possible long-term consequences. The main reason to worry was that the advertisement was pushed on young adults. He suggested banning crypto gambling advertisements targeted at young adults, similar to how gambling companies are prohibited from targeting this group. Makhlouf said such aggressive advertisements tend to mislead young adults, creating unrealistic expectations related to investing in crypto.

According to Makhlouf’s opinion, people are essentially gambling when they invest in cryptocurrencies. He did not fully rule out crypto as part of finance. However, he said there should be certain safeguards, and people should approach this sector very carefully. Being a member of the European Central Bank’s governing council, he announced that new EU regulations would provide critical “guardrails” for stablecoins, cryptocurrencies with a steady value.

Makhlouf also said, when a person gambles, they can win, but mostly, they lose when gambling. He mentioned that if one puts money into unbacked crypto, that person should be prepared to lose it.