With a gold reserve of 1,040 tonnes, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) is one of the largest gold holders in the world. For some time, several voices have been raised in the confederation, calling on the institution to add bitcoin to the list of its stores of value. Thomas Jordan, president of the BNS since 2012, confirms that the bank is not yet prepared to make bitcoin a store of value. He explains the reasons for this posture.
Swiss National Bank skeptical of bitcoin
Known as a welcoming land for crypto, Switzerland has struggled to make bitcoin an official store of value. This is what we remember from the recent comments of Thomas Jordan, president of the Swiss National Bank.
In a statement reported by Reuters, the financier indicated that foreign exchange reserves are supposed to be liquid and sustainable. He also added that bitcoin “is not without risk.” This reflection from one of the oldest central bank governors in office certainly deserves some comments.
Bitcoin rose from $13.45 to $62,835 from 2012 to 2024!
It was in 2012 that Thomas Jordan became president of the Swiss National Bank. In 2012, bitcoin's high was $13.45 while gold was worth $1,668.86. After 12 years at the head of the BNS, Thomas Jordan has certainly had the time to compare the diachronic performances of gold and bitcoin.
The executive knows that the queen of cryptos is currently worth nearly $62,835 compared to gold's $2,338. Bitcoin is one of the rare assets capable of this kind of performance in 12 years.
Bitcoin outperforms the Swiss franc and the Russian ruble
Thomas Jordan also knows that the market capitalization of the parent cryptocurrency is now higher than that of the Swiss franc and the Russian ruble. Does he really believe that bitcoin cannot be a store of value because it is not “liquid and durable” and because it “is not risk-free”? The answer seems obvious.
In 2021, an attempt to make bitcoin an official store of value in Switzerland had already failed. Conservative to the core, the Swiss rejected the proposal. Yves Bennaim, bitcoin activist, is now trying to push for a new referendum for the adoption of crypto. The activist unfortunately admits that he expects the referendum to fail like that of 2021 due to the conservatism of the Swiss.
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