The use of physical cash in Norway has slumped dramatically and the COVID-19 pandemic has inadvertently accelerated the journey towards being a cashless society. In fact, reports say that the Nordic country now has the lowest cash use in the whole wide world.
With this in mind, one would expect that Norway will easily adopt bitcoin as an alternative to fiat. But this is not the case as the Norwegian government is not ready to soften its stance on the OG cryptocurrency. Per a recent Bloomberg report, Oystein Olsen, the governor of Norway’s central bank — Norges Bank — has dismissed any possibility of the country embracing bitcoin.
Why Bitcoin Is Currently Not On Norway’s Radar
The central bank governor noted that bitcoin is unlikely to overthrow fiat money that is presently regulated and controlled by central banks. Olsen gave three reasons that form the basis of his argument. He believes bitcoin is “far too resource-intensive” and also “far too costly”. This is presumably in reference to bitcoin mining and the insane amount of power that it consumes.
Lastly, Olsen asserted that the flagship cryptocurrency “doesn’t preserve stability”. He explained:
“I mean, the basic property and task for a central bank and central-bank currency is to provide stability in the value of money and in the system, and that is not done by bitcoin.”
Norwegian Billionaire Endorses Bitcoin
Olsen’s criticism of bitcoin comes not long since Norwegian oil billionaire Kjell Inge Røkke spoke in favor of the …
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