Central bank digital currency

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A central bank digital currency (CBDC; also called digital fiat currency [1] or digital base money [2] ) is a digital currency issued by a central bank, [3] rather than by a commercial bank. It is also a liability of the central bank and denominated in the sovereign currency, as is the case with physical banknotes and coins.

Contents

A sign on the Hangzhou Metro advertising acceptance of the digital renminbi, the first CBDC adopted by a major economy (China) Digital RMB sign Hangzhou.jpg
A sign on the Hangzhou Metro advertising acceptance of the digital renminbi, the first CBDC adopted by a major economy (China)

There are two general models that CBDCs most commonly described as falling under: retail and wholesale. [4] Retail CBDCs are designed for households and businesses to make payments for everyday transactions, while wholesale CBDCs are designed for financial institutions and operate similarly to central bank reserves. [4] Other CBDC models have emerged as well over time. Most notably, the Federal Reserve proposed an intermediated CBDC in 2022. [5] In this model, the central bank issues a sort of retail CBDC, but financial intermediaries offer customer services.

The present concept of CBDCs differs from virtual currency and cryptocurrency in that a CBDC is or would be issued by a state. [6] [7] [8] [9] Most CBDC implementations will likely not use or need any sort of distributed ledger such as a blockchain. [10] [11] [12]

In 2023, over 120 different jurisdictions, including major economies like the ECB, UK, and the US, were evaluating national digital currencies. [13] As it currently stands, 9 countries and the 8 islands making up the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union have launched CBDCs; 38 countries and Hong Kong have CBDC pilot programs; and 67 countries and 2 currency unions are researching CBDCs. [13] In the United States, some states have introduced legislation [14] [15] to ban state payments using CBDCs with Florida being the first state to pass such a law citing privacy concerns. [16]

CBDCs have faced a plethora of criticisms among those being that a "centrally managed, centrally controlled, CBDC is a tool for coercion and control" [17] and that it would "allow the government to spy on" the citizenry. [18] Some critics of CBDCs say Bitcoin is a better currency alternative that is "global, immutable, and accessible digital cash open to all," as well as "decentralized, open, and permissionless," since it does not rely on a central bank such as the Federal Reserve. [19] [20]

History

Although the term "CBDC" did not become widely used until after 2019, central banks have researched and launched digital currency projects for decades. For example, Finland's central bank issued the Avant stored value e-money card in the 1990s. [21] In 2014, the Chinese central bank began researching the idea of issuing a CBDC. [22] Elsewhere, the Ecuadorian central bank operated a mobile payment system from 2014 to 2018. [23]

Implementation

A central bank digital currency would likely be implemented using a database run by the central bank, government, or approved private-sector entities. [10] [11] [12] The database would keep a record (with appropriate privacy and cryptographic protections) of the amount of money held by every entity, such as people and corporations. [10]

In contrast to cryptocurrency, a central bank digital currency would be centrally controlled (even if it was on a distributed database), and so a blockchain or other distributed ledger would likely not be required or useful - even as they were the original inspiration for the concept. [10] [11] [12]

In 2023, the central banks of 114 countries accounting for 95% of the world’s GDP were said to be in various stages of evaluating the launch of a national digital currency. [24] [25] These included the ECB, the UK, and the US. [26] [27] China's digital RMB was the first digital currency to be issued by a major economy. [28] [29] Six central banks have launched a CBDC: the Central Bank of The Bahamas (Sand Dollar), the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (DCash), the Central Bank of Nigeria (e-Naira), the Bank of Jamaica (JamDex), People's Bank of China (Digital renminbi), the Reserve Bank of India (Digital Rupee), and Bank of Russia (Digital Ruble). [30] The Central Bank of Brazil has been rolling out tests of a digital Brazilian currency (Drex) since March 2023. [31] The ECB/Eurozone decided in October 2023 to move forward to the preparation phase for the potential issuance of a digital euro after a two-year study phase. [32]

Some states have also issued, or have considered issuing, cryptocurrencies: these include Venezuela (Petro) and the Marshall Islands (Sovereign). These cryptocurrencies are often considered with the intent of increasing a state's independence from global financial systems, such as by reducing dependence on a foreign currency or by evading international sanctions. [33] [34]

Contrasting attitudes towards digital currencies were demonstrated by developments in the UK and Switzerland in February 2023. The UK Treasury and the Bank of England said a state-backed digital pound was likely to be launched some time after 2025. Two weeks later, a Swiss lobby group triggered a national vote on maintaining a "sufficient quantity" of cash in circulation over fears that electronic payments make it easier for the state to monitor its citizens' actions. [35] In a comment on the British government’s plans, the BBC's Faisal Islam said the issue was about access to the data attached to every spending transaction, and whether people might choose to trust a global company more than the state: "The eye here is on maintaining UK monetary sovereignty against upheaval from the likes of Big Tech." [36]

A major problem with central bank digital currencies is deciding whether the currency should be easily trackable. If it's traceable, the government has more control than it currently does. Additionally, there's a technical aspect to consider: whether CBDCs should be based on tokens or accounts and how much anonymity users should have. [37]

Characteristics

A CBDC is a high-security digital instrument; like paper banknotes, it is a means of payment, a unit of account, and a store of value. [38] And like paper currency, each unit is uniquely identifiable to prevent counterfeiting. [39] CBDC will have implications for commercial banks, probably in the field of lowering banks' commissions, no big customer data-selling ability, accumulating the deposits and deposit policies and credit policies due to higher funding costs for banks. [40]

Digital fiat currency is part of the base money supply, [41] together with other forms of the currency. As such, DFC is a liability of the central bank just as physical currency is. [42] It is a digital bearer instrument that can be stored, transferred and transmitted by all kinds of digital payment systems and services. The validity of the digital fiat currency is independent of the digital payment systems storing and transferring the digital fiat currency. [43]

Proposals for CBDC implementation often involve the provision of universal bank accounts at the central banks for all citizens. [44] [45]

Benefits and impacts

Governments and central banks are studying CBDCs and their implications for financial inclusion, economic growth, technology innovation, and the efficiency of bank transactions. [46] [47] Potential advantages include:

Risks

Despite having potential advantages, CBDCs remain a controversial topic, and there are risks associated with their implementation.

See also

Related Research Articles

A currency is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general definition is that a currency is a system of money in common use within a specific environment over time, especially for people in a nation state. Under this definition, the British Pound sterling (£), euros (€), Japanese yen (¥), and U.S. dollars (US$) are examples of (government-issued) fiat currencies. Currencies may act as stores of value and be traded between nations in foreign exchange markets, which determine the relative values of the different currencies. Currencies in this sense are either chosen by users or decreed by governments, and each type has limited boundaries of acceptance; i.e., legal tender laws may require a particular unit of account for payments to government agencies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central bank</span> Government body that manages currency and monetary policy

A central bank, reserve bank, or monetary authority is an institution that manages the currency and monetary policy of a country or monetary union. In contrast to a commercial bank, a central bank possesses a monopoly on increasing the monetary base. Many central banks also have supervisory or regulatory powers to ensure the stability of commercial banks in their jurisdiction, to prevent bank runs, and in some cases also to enforce policies on financial consumer protection and against bank fraud, money laundering, or terrorism financing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Digital currency</span> Currency stored on electronic systems

Digital currency is any currency, money, or money-like asset that is primarily managed, stored or exchanged on digital computer systems, especially over the internet. Types of digital currencies include cryptocurrency, virtual currency and central bank digital currency. Digital currency may be recorded on a distributed database on the internet, a centralized electronic computer database owned by a company or bank, within digital files or even on a stored-value card.

Virtual currency, or virtual money, is a digital currency that is largely unregulated, issued and usually controlled by its developers, and used and accepted electronically among the members of a specific virtual community. In 2014, the European Banking Authority defined virtual currency as "a digital representation of value that is neither issued by a central bank or a public authority, nor necessarily attached to a fiat currency but is accepted by natural or legal persons as a means of payment and can be transferred, stored or traded electronically." A digital currency issued by a central bank is referred to as a central bank digital currency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bitcoin</span> Decentralized digital currency

Bitcoin is the first decentralized cryptocurrency. Nodes in the peer-to-peer bitcoin network verify transactions through cryptography and record them in a public distributed ledger, called a blockchain, without central oversight. Consensus between nodes is achieved using a computationally intensive process based on proof of work, called mining, that requires increasing quantities of electricity and guarantees the security of the bitcoin blockchain.

The Denationalisation of Money is a 1976 book by Friedrich Hayek, in which the author advocated the establishment of competitively issued private moneys. In 1978 Hayek published a revised and enlarged edition entitled Denationalisation of Money: The Argument Refined, where he speculated that rather than entertaining an unmanageable number of currencies, markets would converge on one or only a limited number of monetary standards, on which institutions would base the issue of their notes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benoît Cœuré</span> French economist

Benoît Georges Cœuré is a French economist who has been serving as President of the Autorité de la concurence since 2022. He previously served as a member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank from 2012 to 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cryptocurrency</span> Digital currency not reliant on a central authority

A cryptocurrency, crypto-currency, or crypto is a digital currency designed to work as a medium of exchange through a computer network that is not reliant on any central authority, such as a government or bank, to uphold or maintain it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Legality of cryptocurrency by country or territory</span>

The legal status of cryptocurrencies varies substantially from one jurisdiction to another, and is still undefined or changing in many of them. Whereas, in the majority of countries the usage of cryptocurrency isn't in itself illegal, its status and usability as a means of payment varies, with differing regulatory implications.

Circle began as a peer-to-peer payments technology company that now manages stablecoin USDC, a cryptocurrency the value of which is pegged to the U.S. dollar. It was founded by Jeremy Allaire and Sean Neville in October 2013. Circle is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. USDC, the second largest stablecoin worldwide, is designed to hold at or near a stable price of $1. The majority of its stablecoin collateral is held in short-term U.S. government securities.

Bitcoin was designed by its pseudonymous inventor, Satoshi Nakamoto, to work as a currency, but its status as a currency is disputed. Economists define money as a store of value, a medium of exchange and a unit of account, and agree that bitcoin does not currently meet all these criteria.

Diem was a permissioned blockchain-based stablecoin payment system proposed by the American social media company Facebook. The plan also included a private currency implemented as a cryptocurrency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Digital renminbi</span> Digital currency issued by Chinas central bank

Digital renminbi, or Digital Currency Electronic Payment, is a central bank digital currency issued by China's central bank, the People's Bank of China. It is the first digital currency to be issued by a major economy, undergoing public testing as of April 2021. The digital RMB is legal tender and has equivalent value with other forms of renminbi, also known as the Chinese yuan (CNY), such as bills and coins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bitcoin in El Salvador</span> The use and legal status of Bitcoin in El Salvador

El Salvador became the first country in the world to use bitcoin as legal tender, after having been adopted as such by the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador in 2021. It has been promoted by Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador, who claimed that it would improve the economy by making banking easier for Salvadorans, and that it would encourage foreign investment. The adoption has been criticized both internationally and within El Salvador, due to the volatility of Bitcoin, its environmental impact, and lack of transparency regarding the government's fiscal policy.

The recent history of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) has been marked by continuous exploration and development. Over 100 countries were actively engaged in CBDC research in June 2023, with 11 countries, territories or currency unions having launched CBDCs, and 21 implementing pilot programs by October 2023.

The general notion of cryptocurrencies in Europe denotes the processes of legislative regulation, distribution, circulation, and storage of cryptocurrencies in Europe. In April 2023, the EU Parliament passed the Markets in Crypto Act (MiCA) unified legal framework for crypto-assets within the European Union.

Cryptocurrency in Nigeria describes the extent of cryptocurrency use, social acceptance and regulation in Nigeria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Digital rupee</span> Official currency of India

The Digital Rupee (e₹) or eINR or E-Rupee is a tokenised digital version of the Indian Rupee, issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The Digital Rupee was proposed in January 2017 and launched on 1 December 2022. Digital Rupee is using blockchain distributed-ledger technology.

A Digital Euro, is the project of the European Central Bank (ECB), decided in July 2021, for the possible introduction of a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The aim is to develop a fast and secure electronic payment instrument that would complement the Euro for individuals and businesses in its existing form as cash and in bank accounts, and would be issued by the European System of Central Banks of the Eurozone.

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