BERLIN, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- The German Bundesbank cast doubt on Monday on the desirability of crypto-currencies such as Bitcoin.

Speaking to press in Hannover, Bundesbank executive Carl-Ludwig Thiele highlighted that conventional instant payments were "faster, only use a fraction of the energy consumed by Bitcoin, and are additionally much cheaper."

As a consequence, Thiele said he saw little demand for crypto-currencies "in general and specifically in the context of digital central banking."

Instant payments have been introduced in Europe as of 2018 and enable customers of banks which have signed up to the system to transfer funds across the continent in real-time.

According to Thiele, most of the around 1,000 financial institutions which have committed to offering instant payments would begin doing so as of the second half of the year.

Aside from its less-than-clear commercial benefits and extreme fluctuations in value, several critics of crypto-currencies such as Bitcoin have complained that the anonymous character of transfers with these payment forms is highly-attractive for criminal organizations seeking to launder money and complete illicit transactions.