Bitcoin an 'Uber' currency carrying risks and dangers

Paris

BITCOIN, which this week soared to a new record high of more than US$8,000, is the monetary equivalent of Uber, since it bypasses central bank regulation and could be attractive for financially fragile countries, economists say.

Nevertheless, it is precisely the lack of oversight that opens up the users of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin to risks and dangers, analysts warn.

"Bitcoin? It's about 'Uber-ising' currency, about not having a central bank that decides the price," said Ludovic Subran, chief economist at credit insurer Euler Hermes, referring to Uber, the ride-hailing app that has set the cat among the pigeons in the taxi sector in recent years.

"Yes, it's exactly that: it bypasses a central regulatory authority. That's the genius of this invention," agreed Yves Choueifaty, founder of the Paris-based asset management firm Tobam, which this week launched the first …