A proposal to remove the physical representation of the Argentine peso, in order to streamline specific state processes and reduce tax evasion, was presented by former banker Carlos Maria De Los Santos. The plan, identified as the “Argentine Digital Peso”, also predicts that its implementation will lead to tax breaks and bring a surplus to the Argentine economy.
Digital Peso proposal to stop tax evasion
On November 4, former Argentinian banker and president of the Productive Inclusion Foundation Carlos Maria De Los Santos revealed a suggestions The so-called “Argentine Digital Peso”, which involves removing the physical representation of currency in Argentina and digitizing all economic activities. De Los Santos explained that the implementation of this scheme, which is said to be at no extra cost to the Argentine state, would allow banks to monitor all the transactions of the people.
Bank account data will replace physical invoices, with stores and commerce having to rely entirely on that data to conduct financial transactions. In this sense, this control would have the benefit of virtually eliminating tax evasion, with citizens’ transactions available for review by enforcement agencies.
De Los Santos claims that the current rate of tax evasion is around 50% and that collecting all these funds will allow Argentina to achieve an economic surplus of up to 20% annually, limiting the tax deficit. This form of extensive tax collection can result in tax breaks for all taxpayers.
More benefits and similar offers
Other benefits preached by former bankers include setting higher interest rates for savers, who would be enticed to put their money into the system, avoiding investing in speculative assets. have a higher risk. This could integrate a large amount of capital that Argentinians currently have on the international market, or just outside the banking system.
Other proposals that follow this line of thinking have been presented previously. In June, Chaco, the governor of Argentina, Jorge Capitanich, also spoke about the benefits of having a single digital currency. At that time, Capitanich declare:
You have to have a shocking policy, possibly a model that implies adopting digital currency as the only legal tender. We must acknowledge the actual existence of a two-currency system.
Capitanich’s proposal involves depositing all foreign currencies, including US dollars, into national banks in exchange for the proposed digital currency. This will be the only way to trade with these currencies in the hypothetical system.
However, Argentina is one of the countries where cryptocurrencies have become more popular, ranking 13th with the most cryptocurrency adoption, follow to Chainalysis. The existence of such an application and of stablecoins could make it difficult to apply the proposed changes to Argentina’s trading economy.
What do you think of the proposal to issue a digital peso to curb tax evasion in Argentina? Let us know in the comments section below.
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