ECB VP: If You Haven't Bought Bitcoin yet, Don't Bother Right Now

Bitcoin market is too high to buy right now, according to ECB official

Bitcoin’s above $10,000 price has many wondering if they should get in now, or if that ship has sailed.One influential finance player has weighed in and cautions that now is not the time.European Central Bank vice president Vitor Constancio told CNBC that it’s too risky right now. 

“It's a very particular asset, it's a speculative asset by definition looking to the developments in its price. Investors are taking that risk of buying at such high prices.”

Topsy-turvy Wednesday

Constancio’s comments come on the heels of a volatile, topsy-turvy day for Bitcoin. Bitcoin tumbled mightily Wednesday morning after a whale was rumored to have exited their hefty position in the crypto. The ensuing panic from traders tanked the crypto 12% in four minutes.Bitcoin fell to as low as $9,200 from an all-time high of $11,441. Throughout the rest of the day, the crypto struggled to get back to $11,000, but could not. It was around $10,000 at the time of writing. 

Central banks and Bitcoin

Central banks have been trying to walk the delicate line between Bitcoin enthusiasts and regulations. As the price of cryptos, especially Bitcoin, has surged, more calls are for regulators to get involved. For now, the heads of these banks are taking a hands off approach. For example, the ECB’s president Mario Draghi has said:

"With anything that's new, people have great expectations and also great uncertainty. Right now we think that especially as far as bitcoins and cryptocurrencies are concerned, we don't think the technology is mature for our consideration."

Soon-to-be confirmed chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve Jerome Powell said this week that he and the bank are keeping an eye on the crypto space.

“There is no question valuations have gone up quite a lot in the last year or so. In the long, long run, cryptocurrencies of that nature could matter, but they don’t really matter today.”

Moving forward, Constancio told CNBC there’s no need for the ECB to take cryptocurrencies seriously because:

“…in the sense that we don't have responsibility or even instruments that point to particular prices of particular assets, that is certainly not the role of central banks."

by Tedra DeSue , 30 November https://cryptovest.com/news/ecb-vp-if-you-havent-bought-bitcoin-yet-dont-bother-right-now/