The Central Bank of Argentina (Banco Central de la Republica) has turned its attention to blockchain technology in a bid to fight rising national inflation rates.
A recently-released internal document from the bank details a list of forty-two books which the bank has ordered for in-house reading. The general category of the small library could be broadly described as fintech, but several of the titles mentioned reveal that the bank is targeting blockchain directly.
Argentina is in the grip of a near 30% inflation rate and economic officials are leaving no stone unturned in the search for a solution. Looking to the blockchain for help will be scoffed at by the traditionalists and cheered by the techies but both would likely agree that the final outcome has the potential to be revolutionary.
So what will the heads of Argentina’s Central Bank be reading this summer?
Mastering Bitcoin
The first book on the list is Mastering Bitcoin: Programming the Open Blockchain by Andreas Antonopolous. The book acts as a primer on all things blockchain, while also providing instructions regarding the coding side of things.
Antonopolous is an entrepreneur, technologist and author who has since gone on to write the follow-up book Mastering Ethereum: Building Smart Contracts and Dapps.
Blockchain Basics
Moving down the list we have Blockchain Basics: A Non-Technical Introduction in 25 Steps by Daniel Drescher. The blurb for the book describes it as a soft entry point for the uninitiated, stating:
“No mathematical formulas, program code, or computer science jargon are used. No previous knowledge in computer science, mathematics, programming, or cryptography is required.”
The non-technical nature of the book is a reminder that even the people running a national bank are at square-one when it comes to crypto and blockchain tech – as are most of us at this point.
Blueprint for a New Economy
Blueprint for a New Economy by Melanie Swan explores the blockchain’s potential beyond being a mere vehicle for digital cash, looking at the philosophical and societal implications of the distributed ledger technology.
As the title suggests, a new economy might just be what emerges in the wake of blockchain’s eventual mainstream arrival.
This isn’t the first time Argentina has dabbled with blockchain and crypto technology. In fact, the land of silver has seen a faster rate of crypto adoption than most of its Latin American neighbors in recent times.
