While Russians still hope that their national currency will replace the fiat US dollar in developing nations, cryptocurrencies have a real chance to become the dominant means of payment.
IMF Director Christine Lagarde said it was highly possible that virtual money would be used instead of the US currency for settlements in the countries with a weak economy and unstable currency. “Some of these economies might see a growing use of virtual currencies. Call it dollarization 2.0,” she said. Despite high volatility, absence of regulation, and an increased risk of hacker attacks, cryptocurrencies are still considered as more trustworthy payment units than currencies of the countries with a feeble unstable economy. Though digital money is something created out of nothing according to JPMorgan Chief Executive Jamie Dimon, they seem more attractive than the Russian ruble, the North Korean won or the Iranian rial. Therefore, citizens of these countries will likely prefer to use the virtual money sooner or later, Ms Lagarde thinks. She argued that it would be easier and safer to use the digital money than banknotes, and it may become more stable eventually.
Mr. Dimon partly agreed with it: “If you were in Venezuela or Ecuador or North Korea or a bunch of parts like that, or if you were a drug dealer, a murderer, stuff like that, you are better off doing it in bitcoin than U.S. dollars”. This is a really strong argument, so the cryptocurrencies have the glittering future.
