ECB's Panetta likens crypto to 'Ponzi scheme', calls for new global framework

Cryptocurrencies' increasing popularity is a cause for concern and their dynamics resemble that of the sub-prime mortgage mania leading up to the 2008 Great Financial Crisis, European Central Bank Executive Board Member Fabio Panetta said in a speech, adding that there needs to be a singular regulatory regime facilitating the decentralized space. Given cryptos' lack of fundamentals, the number of recent scandals, their use cases in illegal activities and high price volatility, Panetta called for the implementation of crypto taxes to be inline with other financial instruments, according to the written speech. He also thinks that it's best to extend peer-to-peer crypto transfers within the scope of the regulatory standards for anti-money laundering and the prevention of terrorist financing. “Crypto-assets are speculative assets that can cause major damage to society,” Panetta said. “They derive their value mainly from greed, they rely on the greed of others and the hope that