Amid intensifying international focus on stablecoins, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has published a 56-page report detailing what it sees as the key risks surrounding their adoption.
The report draws parallels with claims made by many other central banks and international financial organizations regarding the threat stablecoins pose to government monetary control, to ultimately argue in favor of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).
“Currency substitution facilitated by the adoption of stablecoins would affect monetary sovereignty, the ability of a country to exercise full control over its own currency and monetary policy,” states the report published on December 5. “Central bank money is the most basic, liquid and resilient form of money, and should continue to play its role.”
Gate CBO Kevin Lee’s opinion shared a more conciliatory view with CoinDesk: “While central banks rightly focus on stability, we believe the ‘substitution risk’ narrative misses the bigger picture. Private stablecoins and future CBDCs can coexist.”
According to recent reports from the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the IMF stated that “in certain circumstances, such as fire sales,” “central banks could be forced to intervene,” threatening financial stability.
In this regard, Erbil Karaman, co-founder of Human Finance, whose payments network has processed more than $8 billion in stablecoin transactions, told CoinDesk: “The benefits of stablecoins far outweigh the concerns. The report fails to recognize that the majority of people live in highly unstable fiat economies.”
“Centralized policymaking and centralized financial systems have failed these people for decades, which is why they are massively adopting stablecoins and breaking free,” he added.
The IMF insists that the crypto industry lacks controls and regulatory compliance, making it vulnerable to illegal transactions.
“Stablecoins could also be exploited for illicit purposes such as money laundering and terrorist financing, due to their pseudonymity, low transaction costs, and cross-border ease,” the IMF added.
The same could be said for the US dollar. The Treasury released a report in 2024 that said: “the US dollar remains a popular method of transporting and laundering illicit proceeds both within and outside the United States.”
The influential billionaire founder of the Mexican Grupo Salinas, Ricardo Salinas Pliego, said that he considers all official campaigns against cryptocurrencies as clear indications of fear.
“The banks, the establishment, are afraid, because they are going to lose the power and the money that they had for so many centuries. And that is what this whole campaign against cryptocurrencies and bitcoin is about,” he said in a recent interview with Kitco News.
The IMF report admitted that the challenge that stablecoins represent to government and institutional control over money has everyone on alert. “In this sense, the presence of stablecoins could also be seen as a competitive element that incentivizes governments to implement policies, in order to avoid the loss of monetary authority.”
Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi stated his opinion in October: “This is the real story… The power to issue and control money is spreading from institutions to open systems that anyone can take advantage of.”
