(Bloomberg) -- Bitcoin isn’t perfect, but don’t expect it to go away anytime soon.
At a global market outlook breakfast in Manhattan on Tuesday, executives at Deutsche Bank AG (DE:DBKGn) were in agreement that the cryptocurrency is here to stay.
“The whole idea has a potential future, but it could be better designed,” said Peter Hooper, the bank’s chief economist. “Ultimately, we’re going to have to find a way to accommodate and regulate to avoid the problems. The bigger this becomes the more it is going to attract regulatory interest.”
Talk of regulation has already begun, as bitcoin surged from $1,000 at the start of 2017 to more than $17,000 today. Randy Quarles, The Federal Reserve’s vice chair of supervision, said earlier this month that regulating the asset is “worth thinking about.” Fed Chair nominee Jerome Powell has said that cryptocurrencies could be an issue of concern. And while some Wall Street executives, like JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM).’s Jamie Dimon, don’t think there will be a long run for bitcoin, others have a different outlook.
“There are some potential benefits to this,” Hooper added, citing the ability to send money across borders. “This has a long way to go to compete with existing money supplies, but there are questions about financial stability.”