‘Jaw-droppingly delusional’: Netanyahu crypto proposal sparks alarm across Israel

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s suggestion that Israel could use cryptocurrency to circumvent future banking sanctions triggered alarm and ridicule among financial commentators, journalists and opposition politicians, who accused him of preparing Israelis for international isolation rather than preventing it.

Speaking to Israel’s Channel 10, Netanyahu acknowledged the possibility of banking sanctions and said he had requested a plan involving blockchain technology to help bypass them. His remarks, four days before the election, also included a warning that American military assistance would eventually end.

“This is jaw-droppingly delusional. I wonder how the stock market here will take it,” wrote HaSolidit, the personal finance blogger.

Financial journalist Shlomo Teitelbaum questioned the vision behind the proposal: “Crypto instead of diplomatic agreements? Bitcoin instead of the Foreign Ministry? Where has his good English gone?”

Former IDF spokesman Avi Benayahu responded with an exclamation: “Oh my God, listen twice.” He listed what he understood Netanyahu to be announcing: the end of American aid, economic sanctions against Israel and a shift to a crypto economy. In another post, he expressed concern for the Bank of Israel governor, the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and the exchange rate.

Journalist Attila Somfalvi voiced outright alarm: “I can’t calm down: Netanyahu is actually finishing Israel off. Leading us toward another disaster. This is insane. Frightening.” He questioned whether voters wanted Netanyahu to continue leading the country.

Criticism also came from inside the cryptocurrency industry. Avishai Ovadia, a founding partner at investment firm Collider, called the advice Netanyahu was receiving “wrong and misleading."

He argued that public transaction records and the intermediaries needed to convert digital assets into conventional money made crypto a poor means of evading scrutiny.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid accused Netanyahu of admitting that another term for his government would bring an end to American military assistance and sanctions that would devastate Israel’s economy. He warned of soaring prices and irreparable damage, arguing that a change of government could preserve US support and avert sanctions.

Democrats leader Yair Golan called the interview another “detached and hysterical performance,” adding: “The man has lost it.” He argued that preventing sanctions required confronting Jewish terrorism, restoring Israel’s international standing and protecting its strategic alliances.