Peter Schiff Predicts Crypto Regulation Will Destroy Bitcoin

Economist and gold supporter Peter Shiff. (Photo; Doc. CoinColik)

JAKARTA - Peter Schiff, an economist and gold supporter skeptical of bitcoin, issued a negative prediction about the future of crypto. According to him, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will soon issue strict and burdensome crypto regulation, which will see bitcoin transaction fees soar and bitcoin prices plummet.

In a post on social media platform X on Tuesday, January 18, 2024, Schiff said that SEC chairman Gary Gensler is under pressure to approve spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETF), which is an investment product that follows bitcoin prices in the spot market. Schiff claims that Gensler will take advantage of this opportunity to introduce new crypto regulations that will limit and oversee crypto activity.

"Since Gary Gensler came under pressure to agree to the spot bitcoin ETF, I think he will soon introduce a burdensome new crypto regulation, which will substantially increase bitcoin transaction costs, further weakening 'cases of its use,' which will result in a sharp drop in price," Schiff wrote.

Schiff added that the new regulation will be related to Anti Money Laundering (AML), namely efforts to prevent and eradicate the practice of money laundering and terrorism financing. Schiff thinks that AML regulations will make crypto transactions more difficult, expensive, and not anonymous.

Schiff's upload received various responses from users X. Some agree with his opinion, but many also oppose and criticize him. One user wrote, "I would not call Gensler required to stick to the law as'suppressed to the corner.'" Another user questioned how could Gensler increase bitcoin transaction fees. "Gary Gensler controls pooling bitcoin?" he wrote. Mempool is a temporary storage place for bitcoin transactions waiting to be processed.

Some users also highlighted Gensler's previous statements about bitcoin as a commodity, not a security. Commodities are goods that can be traded on the market, while securities are securities that represent claim rights on assets or revenues. One user said:

"Gary Gensler has repeatedly stated that bitcoin is a commodity. Part of the SEC is to arrange, even the entry and exit routes (except for entry and exit routes are dealing with unregistered securities)."

"The SEC enforces securities laws and protects investors in securities," added the same user, showing that AML regulations are broaderly regulated by other agencies, such as the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a body tasked with analyzing financial information and reporting suspicious activities.