Europe still has a long way to go with crypto adoption: Monty Munford

Europe has been one of the regions that have experienced high crypto adoption, with some nations like Switzerland becoming global icons for crypto. However, according to Monty Munford, the region still has a long way to go before it figures out its crypto stance. The renowned consultant was in Malta for the AI and Blockchain Summit where he shared his views on the digital euro, Libra, China and the future of blockchain.

On Facebook’s Libra digital currency, Munford believes that it may be on its deathbed. The idea was noble – easing the movement of money, especially across borders. However, it rubbed many the wrong way that a tech giant wanted to ‘invent’ its own currency. On his part, Mark Zuckerberg also underestimated his opposition and this will cost him.

“I don’t hold that much faith that it’s going to work. I think they are going to stop it,” he told CoinGeek’s Stephanie Towers.

And while Bitcoin has been offering easy, fast and cheap cross-border money transfers, he believes that Facebook had an advantage as it has billions of users already.

Munford, who is the founder of Mob76, a U.K. tech consultancy, believes that Europe hasn’t handled the rise of crypto in the right manner. He criticized the push by the European Central Bank to develop a digital euro, saying that the ECB is just trying to fit in at a time when many financial giants are taking to crypto. He stated:

“A lot of traditional financial institutions are trying to look sexy and cool with this new digital currency wave. A lot of the initiatives they think are really interesting, aren’t that interesting at all. They are just trying to be one of the cool kids. And I think the example you just posited (the digital euro) is one of those.”

Munford called out many of the big companies which are just getting into blockchain and crypto as a trend. Instead, they should borrow a leaf from those that are using the technology to solve real-world problems. He cited IBM’s efforts to ensure cobalt is sourced ethically in Central Africa and Ford’s efforts to stamp out child labor in mining as some of these efforts.