IMF flags debt restructuring hurdles, says banning crypto should be an option

• India’s G20 presidency comes at a time when its South Asian neighbors are in desperate need of IMF assistance.
• China encouraged G20 nations to conduct a fair, impartial, and in-depth investigation of the causes of global debt crises.
• Regulating cryptocurrencies is a priority area for India.

BENGALURU: There are some debates over restructuring debt for fragile economies, said the head of the International Monetary Fund on the sidelines of a G20 meeting on Saturday, adding that prohibiting private cryptocurrencies should be an option.

India‘s G20 presidency comes at a time when it’s South Asian neighbors, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, are in desperate need of IMF assistance due to an economic downturn induced by the COVID-19 outbreak and the Russia-Ukraine war.

On Friday, China, the world’s largest bilateral creditor, encouraged G20 nations to conduct a fair, impartial, and in-depth investigation of the causes of global debt crises, as pressure mounts on lenders to take a large haircut, or suffer losses, on loans.

“On debt restructuring, while there are still some disagreements, we now have the global sovereign debt roundtable with consideration of all public and private creditors,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told reporters after the roundtable she co-chaired with Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

“We just finished a session in which it was clear that there is a commitment to bridging differences for the benefit of countries.”

Apart from restructuring debt, regulating cryptocurrencies is another priority area for India, which Georgieva agreed with.

“We have to differentiate between central bank digital currencies that are backed by the state and stablecoins, and crypto assets that are privately issued,” Georgieva said.

“There has to be a very strong push for regulation… if regulation fails, if you’re slow to do it, then we should not take off the table banning those assets, because they may create financial stability risk.”

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