It’s no longer just anonymous internet trolls calling out Tether on twitter. One of the most influential economists in the world today, Nouriel Roubini, has just entered the debate, coming down hard against the controversial company.
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Dr. Doom vs Tether
Renowned economics professor Nouriel Roubini (commonly known as Dr. Doom) has called out Tether today for being a scam meant to artificially prop up the price of bitcoin. He thinks that without this “criminal manipulation” the price of bitcoin would crash by 80% and that American financial markets regulators are failing to stop this fraud.
Roubini tweeted that: “Regulators asleep at the wheel while $2 billion of fake $ created via this scam, half of it since December. Not even North Korea created so many fake $ backed by nothing.” And in a separate tweet he added: “Regulators are just ‘looking’ and doing little so far while swindlers, charlatans, scammers, criminals, carnival barkers are in full action in the crypto-universe.”
Tether Printing Press in High Gear, Issuing $400 of Fake USD in 4 Days to Manipulate and Prop Up the Price of Bitcoin. Without this criminal manipulation Bitcoin would crash by 80% based on a recent econometric study. And regulators are asleep at the wheel https://t.co/k2TkbLhBQI
— Nouriel Roubini (@Nouriel) January 25, 2018
All That Glitters Is Doomed
Roubini had became famous mostly for predicting the economic crisis and housing bubble crash of 2007-2008. Besides teaching at New York University’s Stern School of Business and serving as chairman of the economic consultancy Roubini Macro Associates, he is also a frequent figure on financial mass media. This gives him a strong public platform, which both US regulators and Tether will find hard to ignore. Additionally, Roubini touched a point which many in the cryptocurrency world are also afraid of, as evident by repeated calls for an audit of Tether and the recent attempt settle the matter.
This isn’t the first time Dr. Doom took a shot at the cryptocurrency world. He previously said that: “Gold is another scam with scammers peddling it all day long on Fox TV commercials to clueless retails investors – grandpas & grandmas – & charging them prices above market + gouging fees. And now all the fanatic lunatic gold bugs have become Bitcoin bugs. Gold & BTC: two scams.“ Luckily for bitcoin holders, Roubini has been wrong before in his analysis on the cryptocurrency.
Are US regulators likely to act against Tether after being called out by Roubini or should the company just sue Dr. Doom for spreading FUD? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.
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