A group of 109 Israeli economists, including former Bank of Israel officials and senior former public officials, has published a joint letter criticising Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s suggestion that cryptocurrency could be used to get around Western sanctions against the banking system. The letter called his remarks surprising.
Warnings over isolation
The signatories warned that isolation would cause irreparable damage. They said sanctions on the banking system would hurt companies, exporters, investors and the technology sector.
The letter also said unemployment would rise and foreign investment would be cut off. It cited South Africa, Iran and Russia as examples of countries under sanctions.
The Bank of Israel’s response
The Bank of Israel rejected the proposal to use blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies to bypass Western sanctions.
Netanyahu made the remarks to Kanal 10 while discussing a decision by 12 Western countries to ban trade with Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories. Kanal 12 reported the letter.
