Edward Snowden says crypto was an “evolving threat” for governments

Edward Snowden, a renowned whistleblower, stated that governments viewed crypto as an “evolving threat.” He noted that governments were threatened by people abandoning the traditional tools for a private financial system.

Snowden critiques the US financial system

“I think governments correctly perceive an evolving threat to traditional tools which they’ve grown accustomed to, in terms of an ability to impose regulation upon private lives, and probably, private trade”, Snowden said.

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Snowden further said that the US financial system was invasive. He criticized the know-your-customer (KYC) and anti-money laundering (AML) strategies necessary for handling financial transactions.

He further commended Bitcoin (BTC/USD) and the blockchain technology that operates through a public ledger, noting that the cash system was just as public as transactions done through the blockchain network.

“When you think about Bitcoin having a public ledger, well, once a dollar enters the banking system, there is a private ledger that is available to the people who are performing financial surveillance. So it’s really just private to the public, but it’s public to the prominent, shall we way,” he said.

The US recently released an executive order on digital assets signed by US President Joe Biden. The executive order addressed the regulatory framework for digital assets, saying that these assets needed to be monitored to protect investors. IT invited federal agencies to work together to develop the necessary regulations. The executive order also looked at how the US could develop a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

Snowden is also critical of crypto

Snowden has also been sceptical of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. In 2021, he attended the Ethereal Summit. He said that Bitcoin needed to be “private by design” to protect other cryptocurrencies from the crackdown of law enforcement agencies.

He has also attacked Ethereum, saying that it also “suffers from the same sort of privacy problems as Bitcoin.” However, he has still praised by Bitcoin blockchain, saying that it evened the playing field. He noted that while blockchain technology was not entirely private, none of his concerns had stopped him from noticing the power of cryptocurrencies and decentralized ledger technology.