ABSTRACT
The rise in cryptocurrency usage has had implications for governments worldwide. Despite the surge, governments have been relatively late in the overall regulation of cryptocurrency. This has undoubtedly brought governments’ “crypto-readiness” into sharp focus. The most prominent concern is the unregulated nature of cryptocurrencies even amidst their wide accessibility. Some countries have responded through legislations to monitor the proliferation of the currency while others have not paid much attention to the developments. Given this dichotomy, this chapter focuses on assessing the extent to which governments across the world are ready to deal with the implications and ramifications of crypto proliferation. Readiness is examined in the context of knowledge/human capital readiness, infrastructural readiness, legislative readiness, and social capital readiness. The current lessons show that governments throughout the world continue to be sceptical about cryptocurrency and as a result majority of the countries are not ready. Based on the drastic shifts in the global digital space, it can be anticipated that they will soon be ready for this new age in which digital currency will be a major part of the global economic markets. The future possibilities of government readiness are dependent on the level of willingness, ability, and priority placed on crypto-expansion by governments, society, and businesses.
