The President of the Swiss Central Bank rejected calls to include Bitcoin (BTC) in its reserves.

Source: Cointelegraph Original: "Swiss National Bank President Rejects Calls to Include Bitcoin (BTC) in Reserves"

Officials from the Swiss National Bank have rejected calls to consider Bitcoin (BTC) as a reserve asset to hedge against current macroeconomic turmoil.

According to a Reuters report on April 25, Martin Schlegel, the chairman of the Swiss National Bank, stated at a shareholders' meeting held in Bern today that "cryptocurrencies currently do not meet our requirements for currency reserves." This statement comes as the local cryptocurrency industry pressures for Bitcoin (BTC) to be included in central bank reserves.

Luzius Meisser, a board member of cryptocurrency broker Bitcoin Suisse and an event advocate, stated in an interview with Reuters: "As the world shifts towards a multipolar order, holding Bitcoin makes more sense." He noted that in the current context of "the weakening of the dollar and the euro," this demand has become more urgent.

This is not the first time Schlegel has opposed this proposal. Reports from early March quoted Schlegel as saying that he does not wish to use Bitcoin as a reserve asset for Switzerland, citing concerns about its lack of stability, liquidity, and security.

On December 31, 2024, the Federal Chancellery of Switzerland initiated a proposal to constitutionalize the authorization for the Swiss National Bank to hold Bitcoin on its balance sheet. The proposal requires the collection of 100,000 signatures to trigger a national referendum in Switzerland.

The initiative calls for an amendment to the third paragraph of Article 99 of the Constitution. The current content of the relevant provisions is:

"The Swiss National Bank should create sufficient monetary reserves from its income; a portion of the reserves should be held in the form of gold."

If the initiative is successful, the words "and Bitcoin" will be added at the end of this section. The Swiss Bitcoin non-profit think tank 2B4CH is involved in this initiative, responsible for preparing and submitting the relevant documents. 2B4CH has certain connections with industry heavyweights, and the Vice President of Energy and Mining at leading stablecoin issuer Tether, Giw Zanganeh, participated in the launch of this event.

Meisser stated that holding Bitcoin would allow central banks to free themselves from the political influence of their foreign exchange reserves (mainly USD and EUR). He said: "Politicians will ultimately succumb to the temptation of financing their plans through money printing, but Bitcoin is a currency that cannot be inflated through deficit spending." Yves Bennaïm, founder and chairman of 2B4CH, said in an interview with Reuters:

"We do not advocate fully investing in Bitcoin, but if one has a reserve of nearly 1 trillion Swiss francs like the Swiss National Bank, then it makes sense to invest 1-2% of that into an asset that is continually increasing in value, improving in security, and that everyone wants to own."

Switzerland is a hub for blockchain companies, with its "Crypto Valley" located in the town of Zug being the birthplace of Ethereum (ETH). The country continues to roll out cryptocurrency initiatives, and earlier this month, global retail giant Spar launched a Bitcoin-based payment service in a city in Switzerland.

The valuation of Crypto Valley has exceeded $593 billion, showcasing the growth trajectory of the blockchain industry in the region for 2024. Last year, 17 crypto startup unicorns emerged in the region.

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