Portuguese banker says cryptocurrencies “don’t stand a chance”

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A former vice-chairman of the European Central Bank and ex-governor of the Bank of Portugal says that cryptocurrencies “don’t stand a change” of rooting in the market.

Vítor Constâncio, who sat on the European Central Bank for 10 years, said he was not “worried about digital currencies.”

The former Portuguese finance minister and leader of the country’s PS socialist party said “cryptocurrencies wouldn’t stand a chance of getting visibility” compared to “real currencies.”

“You can’t have currencies without state power behind them,” said Vítor Constâncio during a speech at the Unicâmbio conference which celebrated its 26th anniversary as the oldest currency exchange at Lisbon’s business and economics school ISEG – Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestão. 

Addressing the issue of “using national currencies internationally” he called cryptocurrencies as a form of “speculation” adding that these could not be seen as competitors since they “don’t meet the necessary conditions to be currencies.”

“They (cryptocurrencies) will never be anything but small scale and are already in decline” he said adding that the “US dollar would maintain its position of preeminence for a long time.”