Keep bitcoin away from South Africa’s strategic reserve: Helen Zille [Video]

Democratic Alliance federal chair Helen Zille is bullish about bitcoin but has cautioned against its use as a strategic reserve currency by the state.

Zille was speaking at a cryptocurrency conference, called Adopting Bitcoin, held recently in Cape Town. She said she invests in crypto personally – and every “spare penny” she has goes into crypto investments (not her main savings). She is, however, far more cautious about the cryptocurrency being used as a reserve currency, an idea that has gained favour in the US following the election of Donald Trump as president.

Zille admitted that the adoption of bitcoin as a strategic reserve currency had helped El Salvador reduce its debt significantly – bitcoin has more than doubled in value since the Latin American country invested in the cryptocurrency. One of the key objectives was to de-risk El Salvador’s finances by reducing its dependence on the US dollar.

Zille described the steps taken by El Salvador as “important …