At the dawn of 2018, there is considerable speculation on whether big banks will soon begin to treat Bitcoin as a real commodity. Some central bankers are already reported to be exploring the possibilities of issuing digital currencies, with tokens held in either a standard or a digital account, offered on a blockchain, or held on a smart card. Such ideas propose a fixed value token, with one cryptocurrency unit tethered to one unit of national currency, such as $1 or £1.

The main argument against this is that cryptocurrency investors want to make substantial gains, as well as to trade as anonymously as possible. Central banks don\'t need to make anonymous transactions or get massive returns on their investments, but they are obligated to maintain fiscal stability within their nation.

Holding a portfolio of Bitcoin wouldn\'t help central bankers in this respect as their price volatility makes them an unreliable asset. Furthermore, with current systems already operating securely, there would be no apparent advantage for the banks to take on digital currencies that function perfectly well as alternative payment systems in the private sector.

The only advantage a central bank cryptocurrency could offer would be to combine big bank security with anonymity. People on the whole still want their financial dealings to be private, and this is an essential contradiction to central bank practice. It remains to be seen what form central bank policy regarding cryptocurrencies will take.