Argentina’s crypto enthusiasts are criticizing the government’s recent deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over an alleged anti-crypto requirement. The deal boosts Argentina with a $45 billion payout but there are a series of shady measures which hurdle the growth of the crypto industry in the country.
It wants the national government to discourage the use of cryptocurrencies in order to prevent money laundering and informality. IMF believes that this will protect financial stability and official incentives from the digitization of payments. Plus, it will give protection to the financial consumer.
Argentinian experts say these measures could slow the growth of cryptocurrency adoption in the country. Argentina’s digital assets industry is trying to understand the repercussions, if any, of IMF’s agreement. It wants to establish how these and more will impact the industry.
The South American country has had 22 huge bailouts from the IMF. In 2018, under President Mauricio Macri, Argentina and IMF sealed a $57 billion program. But the deal did not save the country from slipping into recession. As such, Argentina has $17.5 billion of payments in debt under the 2018 agreement. Economist Roberto Geretto of Fundcorp highlighted that the agreement was necessary for Argentina in order not to default with IMF.
