Bitcoin is not a ‘threat’ to the US dollar: CEO of Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon does not see bitcoin as a threat to the US dollar and considers its fundamentals valuable to banks.
“I don't think Bitcoin is a threat to the U.S. dollar,” Solomon said in a January 22 interview with CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Solomon said he is a “big believer” in the US dollar and called Bitcoin (BTC) an “interesting speculative value.”
He added that Bitcoin's “underlying technology” was the focus of significant research by Goldman Sachs to test it in a way that “could cause less disruption to the financial system.”
“It's very important,” Solomon added. However, from a regulatory perspective, little has changed regarding the restrictions banks face in using bitcoin, he said.
“Right now, from a regulatory perspective, we can't own, we can't principal, we can't participate with bitcoin.
“If the world changes, we can discuss this issue,” he added.
Solomon's argument echoes a similar sentiment for Lee Bratcher, president of the Texas Blockchain Council, an industry advocacy group.
As Bracher recently told Cointelegraph, an overpowered, dollar-pegged stablecoin could extend the dominance of the US dollar.
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“If we want to maintain US dominance, we need the dollar to remain the world's reserve currency. For this to happen, we need stablecoins to expand because stablecoins are giving people around the world access to dollars, Bracher said.
The US Dollar Index (DXY) is at 108.310, up 0.14% over the past 30 days, according to TradingView data. During the same period, Bitcoin traded at $102,911, an increase of 7.89%.
It was reported in November that Goldman Sachs is preparing to spin off its cryptocurrency platform to create a new company focused on creating and trading financial instruments on blockchain networks.
At the time, Goldman's global head of digital assets, Matthew McDermott, said the deal would be completed in the next 12 to 18 months, pending regulatory approval.
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