As Canada prepares to go to the polls, voters will be considering a range of issues including the economy, housing, trade relations with the U.S., and digital assets. Two leading Prime Minister candidates have taken different approaches to cryptocurrency: Pierre Poilievre’s pro-crypto stance versus Mark Carney’s cautious approach.
As Canada prepares to go to the polls, voters will be considering a range of issues including the economy, housing, trade relations with the U.S., and digital assets. While cryptocurrency is not a major electoral issue during this year’s Canadian election, both leading Prime Minister candidates have discussed the issue in the past.
The ‘Freedom Convoy’ was supported by Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the Conservative Party, who has been a longtime Bitcoin and blockchain advocate. He owns shares in a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) and has promised to turn Canada into the ‘blockchain and crypto capital of the world.’ In 2022, he promised to give people the freedom to choose other money if the government abuses cash.
Pierre Poilievre is a Canadian politician serving as the Member of Parliament for Carleton.
He was first elected in 2004 and has since held various cabinet positions, including Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister of Finance.
Born on June 3, 1979, in Calgary, Alberta, Poilievre earned a Bachelor's degree in economics from McGill University.
He is known for his conservative views and has been involved in several high-profile controversies throughout his career.
Pierre Poilievre called ‘Bitcoin…the single most important asset you could own’ and opposed the Bank of Canada’s research into a central bank digital currency, arguing that it could infringe on privacy rights or let lawmakers target benefits to supporters.
While Pierre Poilievre has discussed crypto less in recent days, the Conservative Party as a whole still tends to support the industry. Citing various Members of Parliament who have introduced bills or otherwise discussed crypto, ‘Maclean’s reported that the party remains committed to the industry’.
The leader of the Liberal Party, Mark Carney, has been more cautious in his approach to cryptocurrency. While he hasn’t said a lot about Bitcoin, he did give a speech on the ‘future of money’ in London in March 2018, criticizing digital assets’ use citing speculative mania and a lack of vendors willing to accept it as a payment tool.
Mark Carney is a Canadian economist and banker who served as the Governor of the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020.
He was born in 1965 in Toronto, Canada.
Carney worked at Goldman Sachs before joining the Bank of Canada in 2004.
In 2011, he became the Senior Advisor to the President of the United States on Economic Policy and later served as the Governor of the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020.
Mark Carney pointed out that cryptocurrencies are not widely accepted and have limitations in terms of transaction throughput, ease of access. However, he also acknowledged the potential benefits of digital assets, such as their core technology being an attempt to create the financial architecture for peer-to-peer transactions.
Just over a year later, Mark Carney suggested that a global hegemonic digital currency backed by central bank digital currencies could bolster the world economy against the role of the dollar. He argued that this would help reduce the influence of the U.S on global financial conditions and reduce the volatility of capital flows to emerging markets.
Both candidates have taken different approaches to cryptocurrency, with Pierre Poilievre advocating for a more permissive approach and Mark Carney taking a more cautious stance. However, it’s worth noting that both parties still support the industry to some extent.
As Canada prepares to go to the polls, voters will be considering a range of issues including digital assets. While cryptocurrency is not a major electoral issue during this year’s Canadian election, understanding the candidates’ stances on the issue can provide valuable insight into their approach to economic policy and regulation.
- coindesk.com | Previewing the Canadian Elections Crypto Angle
