--- title: "Swedish Central Bank Head: Bitcoin Price Could Completely Collapse" description: "Stefan Ingves, the governor of Sweden's central bank, compared Bitcoin to trading stamps, undermining the validity and feasibility of the cryptocurrency." date: "2021-09-09" modified: "2021-09-09" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/swedish-bank-bitcoin-price-could-collapse" categories: - "Bitcoin" - "Blockchain" - "Cryptocurrency" - "Future Society" tags: - "bitcoin" - "cryptocurrencies" - "decentralized banking" - "digital currencies" --- # Swedish Central Bank Head: Bitcoin Price Could Completely Collapse ![Stefan Ingves, the governor of Sweden's central bank, compared Bitcoin to trading stamps, undermining the validity and feasibility of the cryptocurrency.]() *\Image: Getty Images/Futurism\* Stefan Ingves, the governor of Sweden's central bank, said that Bitcoin's value could collapse drastically — and compared the seminal crytocurrency to stamp collecting, undermining its validity and long-term feasibility. "Private money usually collapses sooner or later," he said during a banking conference in Stockholm, in [remarks reported by *Bloomberg*](). "And sure, you can get rich by trading in bitcoin, but it’s comparable to trading in stamps." While it's [gaining momentum]() and [earning approval by key players]() in the financial tech industry, Bitcoin has simultaneously attracted increasingly scrutiny by regulators around the world. Many business heavyweights, [including Elon Musk](), have endorsed the digital currency, others remain unconvinced. Different countries have vastly different outlooks toward cryptocurrency. The Sweden news comes shortly after El Salvador officially [became the first country in the world]() to [officially adopt Bitcoin]() as a legal currency, for instance. And now the central bank of Honduras is considering a similar move, [*Reuters* reports](). In China, however, cryptocurrency has increasingly become the subject of a [national crackdown](), with officials arguing that it's [environmentally destructive]() and has no inherent value. Cryptocurrencies "are not legal tenders and have no actual value support," said Yin Youping, the deputy director of the Financial Consumer Rights Protection Bureau of the People’s Bank of China, in a press release last month, as [translated by *Benzinga*](). China and Sweden's central banks are not alone in voicing their doubts about the mainstream digital currency, especially given the recent trend of governments [discussing the possibility]() of establishing their own centralized and government-backed digital currencies. "Bitcoin, given its performance shortcomings and energy inefficiency, is in no way a relevant comparison for the sort of technology we might use in a central bank digital currency," Bank of England’s fintech director said during a conference last month, as [quoted by *Coindesk*](). Whether central digital currencies backed by banks will fill in the gaps for those who have been endorsing Bitcoin is arguably unlikely. Bitcoin proponents argue that it's decentralized nature is specifically what gives it value. As ever, Bitcoin faces a steep uphill battle to enter the mainstream — and it will be fascinating to see how that plays out in the arena of international policy. **READ MORE:** [Bitcoin Could Eventually Collapse, Swedish Central Banker Warns]() \[*Bloomberg*\] **More on Bitcoin:** *[Bitcoin Dudes Buy Cruise Ship for Crypto Utopia, Immediately Bungle Everything]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()