Impact of cryptocurrencies on inflation: evidence from BICS countries
Vaibhav Aggarwal, Mohit Saini, Pankaj Kumar, Mahender Yadav, Adesh Doifode · International Journal of Diplomacy and Economy · 2024
Academic research on cryptos has exploded over the past decade; however, the impact of cryptocurrency on inflation in emerging markets is an underexplored research area. This study addresses this by investigating the impact of two major cryptocurrencies - Bitcoin and Ethereum, on inflation in four major emerging countries - Brazil, India, China and South Africa (BICS). Monthly data on cryptocurrencies and inflation (WPI and CPI) is taken from Oct 2017 to Nov 2022. The Vector Auto-Regression (VAR) findings indicate that in BICS countries, there is no significant impact of cryptocurrencies - Bitcoin and Ethereum on the inflation of BICS. The results of this study can be useful for policymakers regarding inflation management and the risks and challenges associated with cryptocurrency adoption.