Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu , who faces re-election this week, is drawing criticism from economists and political rivals after suggesting Israel could use cryptocurrency to help shield its economy from potential international sanctions.
In an interview with Israel’s Channel 10 on Friday, Netanyahu said he was preparing for a scenario in which broader sanctions were imposed on Israel.
On Sunday, more than 100 economists, including former Bank of Israel officials, ex-central bank governor Jacob Frenkel and several Nobel laureates, signed a letter expressing alarm over Netanyahu’s proposal.
Last month, Britain , France and Canada said they would block imports from Israeli settlements in the West Bank in what was the latest in a series of actions targeting Israel’s settlement policy, underscoring its growing diplomatic isolation among some of its traditional allies. The comments drew a rare rebuke by the Bank of Israel, which said crypto currencies cannot serve as a route to bypass sanctions and that political leaders should focus on policy that would render such measures unnecessary. They said it would lead to higher unemployment, a fall in foreign investment and the collapse of Israel’s economic standing in the world. Netanyahu’s main rival in Tuesday’s election, Gadi Eisenkot, called the crypto plan “madness” and said he feared that the “BibiCoin policy” would drive companies abroad and undermine national security.
Opinion polls point to a potential stalemate in the election with neither Netanyahu’s ruling coalition nor an opposition alliance securing a governing majority in parliament.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid said: “Netanyahu has gone off the rails … He promises the citizens of Israel before these elections that they’ll be standing in line for an hour and a half for bread, like in Russia and Iran.”
