Malaysia rules out adopting cryptocurrency as legal tender

Malaysia is not recognising cryptocurrencies as legal tender due to "various limitations", says Deputy Finance Minister. — Bloomberg

Malaysia has no intention of recognising cryptocurrencies as legal tender, Deputy Finance Minister I said in parliament on Thursday.

"Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are not suitable for use as a payment instrument due to various limitations,” which include price swings and exposure to cyber threats, Mohd Shahar Abdullah said.

His comments come days after a minister in the Southeast Asian nation urged the government to legalise cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin as a way to build youth participation in the crypto space.

"The growing technology and payment landscape have prompted the Bank Negara Malaysia to actively assess the potential of banks’ digital currency central or the central bank’s digital currency (CBDC),” Mohd Shahar said. – Bloomberg