Cryptocurrencies threaten global payment system, according to Starling founder

The “strong lady” of the Goldman Sachs-backed digital bank Starling has stepped up her criticism of cryptocurrencies, calling digital currencies a “threat” to the security of the global payment system infrastructure.

“Things are very dangerous,” said Anne Boden, who founded Starling in 2014, speaking at the “Money 20/20” fintech conference in Amsterdam. Based in the UK, Starling offers bank account and lending services free of charge through an online application. The company, which is not listed, has a market capitalization of αγορά 2.5 billion ($ 3.1 billion), with Goldman and Fidelity retaining investment positions in the venture.

“Many cryptocurrency wallets are directly linked to payment schemes,” Boden said. “This is a threat to the security of the payment forms of all of us worldwide.”

The biggest players in the field of payments “embrace” cryptocurrencies – among them the masters of credit cards Mastercard and Visa have opened their networks in digital assets, while PayPal also allows users to trade in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Regulators are concerned about the growing entanglement of the financial system with the highly volatile and volatile world of crypto.

Nearly $ 400 billion worth of value has evaporated in the wider industry in the past month as investors were shaken by the collapse of terraUSD, a popular stablecoin that was supposed to hold $ 1.

This is not the first time Boden has warned of the dangers of cryptocurrencies. Earlier it had sounded the alarm about the risk of consumers falling victim to fraud as a result of investment in the industry.

“Customers are gaining traction,” the head of Starling said on Tuesday. “We spend a lot more time saving customers from scammers than we do promoting cryptocurrencies.”

Asked if Starling would ever offer crypto-related services, Boden noted that this is not very likely to happen in the next 1-2 years, adding that companies in the field have many steps to take in the field of anti-money laundering checks.

Source: Capital

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