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Crypto Assets Aren’t a ‘Real Investment,’ ECB Vice President Says

Crypto’s weak fundamentals mean investors should be prepared for more price swings, Luis de Guindos said.

Updated Sep 14, 2021, 12:57 p.m. Published May 19, 2021, 1:54 p.m.
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Crypto assets shouldn't be seen as a “real investment,” according to European Central Bank Vice President Luis de Guindos.

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  • Difficulties in discerning the underlying value of crypto assets prevent them being classified as real investments, de Guindos said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Wednesday.
  • Crypto assets have “very weak fundamentals.” Investors should be braced for more price swings, he said.
  • “When you have difficulties to find out what are the real fundamentals of an investment, then what you’re doing is not a real investment.”
  • Crypto investors have had to withstand stomach-churning volatility this month, with the world’s largest cryptocurrency, bitcoin, dropping 34% so far in May, the most in a single month since November 2018.

See also: ECB Speeds €1.85T Stimulus Program as Lagarde Frets Over ‘Premature Tightening’

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