Mastercard CEO: Non-government-issued digital currencies are garbage

On October 10, Ajay Banga, the first Indian president and CEO of Mastercard, recently shared his views on digital currencies, saying that digital currencies without government support are "garbage."

Ajay Bang also criticized the volatility of Bitcoin, as the digital currency is often used in illegal activities such as ransomware attacks. Bang also expressed support for the Chinese government's crackdown on Bitcoin transactions:

He noted:

"If I pay for a bottle of water with Bitcoin, one day one Bitcoin buys two bottles of water, and the next day one Bitcoin buys 9,000 bottles of water. That's a problem. Any currency needs stability and transparency, otherwise you open yourself up to all kinds of illegal activities."

It is clear that most financial bigwigs are not optimistic about Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.

Recently, Axel Weber, former chairman of Deutsche Bank and current chairman of UBS, also commented:

“The main functions of money include that it is a means of payment, it must be generally accepted, it must be a store of value, and it is a medium of exchange. Bitcoin only meets the medium of exchange function.”

In September, the CEO of JPMorgan Chase also commented on Bitcoin, saying that Bitcoin has no value backing and is essentially a scam. His comments may not be entirely true, but they ultimately caused a short-term drop in Bitcoin prices and received a response from the industry.

Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates, one of the world's largest hedge funds, also recently criticized Bitcoin's volatility.

He said:

“It is not an effective store of wealth because it is highly volatile, unlike gold. Bitcoin is a highly speculative market and it is a bubble.”

In the view of Brock Pierce, chairman of the Bitcoin Foundation, these comments are a sign that the cryptocurrency market is moving in the right direction.

Brock said in an interview:

“If traditional industry managers make statements like this, it might just be proof that the work we’re doing is starting to have an effect.”