The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says that the Central African Republic’s adoption of bitcoin as legal tender presents a series of challenges for the country. This comes after the country announced that it adopted bitcoin as legal tender last week.
The decision has so far drawn criticism from opposition parties in the country and Banque des États de l’Afrique Centrale (BEAC), the Central Bank which manages the fiat currency used by 6 countries.
“The adoption of bitcoin as legal tender in C.A.R raises major legal, transparency, and economic policy challenges. IMF staff are assisting the regional and Central African Republic’s authorities in addressing the concerns posed by the new law.” The Fund mentioned in an email to Bloomberg.
On the other hand, The Central African Republic insists that adopting bitcoin will spur its economic recovery and growth and stabilize the country, which was wracked by the civil war.
At the moment, the Central African Republic ranks 188 out of 189 on the United Nations Development Programme’s Human Development Index. The 2.3 billion dollar economy will expand to 5.1% this year, according to the African Development Bank.