Sweden is edging toward issuing a national cryptocurrency

One of the first European countries to print paper money may also be first to phase it out. According to an HSBC analyst report, Sweden is the next nation to emerge as straight-up pro-cryptocurrency. Cash is dying there, with most Swedish residents perpetuating the well-established culture of paying for things via card or app. In 2015, bills and coins represented just 2% of Sweden’s economy. In 2016, the country’s central bank, Sveriges Riksbank, announced it was investigating issuing a formal Swedish cryptocurrency called the e-krona. A lot of pieces fit in the hypothetical jigsaw puzzle of Sweden-as-cryptocurrency-haven. The Swedish population already has a lot of experience with financial technology, thanks…