Tim Draper, a prominent cryptocurrency advocate, and billionaire investor faced unexpected resistance during his recent visit to Sri Lanka. The Silicon Valley entrepreneur was in the country to film an episode of his TV show “Meet the Drapers” and to promote the widespread adoption of Bitcoin.
However, his proposal was not well received in a 30-minute meeting by the country’s President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe, who is currently focused on stabilizing the nation’s financial situation, according to a report by Bloomberg on February 3.
Despite Draper’s confident pitch, “I come to the central bank with decentralized currency,” dressed in a Bitcoin tie and armed with the concept of decentralized currency, his ideas were not embraced during a meeting at the central bank.
“We do not accept,” Weerasinghe remarked curtly.
This was a colder reception for Draper than he has had elsewhere. For example, the Pacific island nation of Palau made him the first person to participate in its digital-residency program.
Draper doubles down on rejection
During the meeting with Governor Weerasinghe, Draper persisted in his efforts to promote cryptocurrency adoption. He posed the question of whether the administration had the bravery to take on such a project and emphasized the benefits of having a proprietary currency. Draper expressed his concerns for the country and highlighted the current financial crisis as a unique opportunity for Sri Lanka. He argued that the adoption of Bitcoin could help alleviate corruption by maintaining an accurate record of transactions.
However, Governor Weerasinghe pointed out that other technologies can effectively provide financial services and disburse welfare payments to underserved populations. He also noted that a country without its own currency would lack monetary independence and that introducing Bitcoin during a time of crisis could potentially worsen the situation.
He stated, “We don’t want to make the crisis worse by introducing Bitcoin.”
(Source : Finbold)