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October 22 is when Argentinians will vote for Bitcoin and dollarisation, or a continuation of the central bank and an implementation of CBDCs.
The world watches Argentina
Argentina is causing much consternation across the world, especially in the realm of traditional finance. It will very shortly elect a new president for the country, and the likelihood of this new president being anti-central bank and a complete change to what has gone before, is very good.
Candidates are polls apart
Javier Milei is the people’s favourite going into the election. He is pro-Bitcoin and has vowed to abolish Argentina’s central bank - just two matters that will no doubt cause much unease among central bankers across the globe.
On the other hand, there is Sergio Massa, who is the current Minister of the Economy, and who has served in previous governments. The fact that he is seen as part of the ruling class that many blame for Argentina’s present predicament is an issue he must deal with.
Inflation in Argentina hit 124% in September. The highest since 1991, and in order to combat this the Argentine central bank raised the benchmark interest rate to 118%. How do citizens of any country cope with such a situation?
However, Massa argues that if it were not for him, things would have been far worse. That being said, Massa has one hell of a job on his hands to convince voters that he can turn the country around. His promise to implement a central bank digital currency (CBDC) might also prove a very thorny issue with voters.
IMF awaits the victor
Whoever wins the election, they will have to face what could be a very uncomfortable series of interviews with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Argentina is the largest debtor country and still owes $44 billion of a $57 billion loan made by the IMF in 2018. With China stepping in to help with the last payment
Javier Milei is likely to have the most uncomfortable relationship with the IMF given his vow to abolish the Argentine central bank and his insistence that Bitcoin is a much better alternative to even gold and silver.
The facts do spell out that had Argentinians been able to buy bitcoin over the last few years and hold it instead of pesos in the bank, they wouldn’t have seen a drastic devaluation in their wealth.
Milei is seen by some as an odd kettle of fish, with sometimes what might be seen as bizarre opinions. Be that as it may, he is at odds with the IMF and is pro-Bitcoin. This may be enough to win the upcoming presidential election.
