Developed in the aftermath of the subprime mortgage crisis in 2008 to provide an alternative model to the monetary system based on trust, Bitcoin is currently experiencing massive success in the context of the Covid-19 crisis. Alicia Gasset, in her paper, describes how can investments in Bitcoin be seen as a kind of “technological populism” that highlights the contradictions and dysfunctions of the traditional monetary model. She underlines that Bitcoin can be risky if misused and raises ecological concerns regarding computers’ power consumption, which is needed for Bitcoin mining. Gasset recommends that national, regional and international public authorities must cooperate to regulate this innovative technology. She highlights that it is not a question of destroying innovation but providing it with a legal framework and adapting it to contemporary issues.

Policy Paper – Alicia Gasset, March 2021

Full text in PDF under the link below.