Fed Chair outlines work on CBDC implementation plan

Fed Chair Jerome Powell, at a Senate hearing, said he is preparing a strategy for implementing CBDC.

“A digital dollar is what we really need to study. … We must avoid bias,” said the official.

Powell responded to a question about the Fed’s next steps in deploying a CBDC.

“This is a very important potential financial innovation that will affect all Americans. Our plan is to work in the coming years on both the policy and the technological side. At some point we will present a recommendation to Congress,” he said.

Powell noted that the digital dollar should be the prerogative of the state.

“One of the questions is whether we want private ‘stablecoins’ to become the digital dollar. I think the answer is no. If we have a CBDC, it should be money guaranteed by the government,” he explained.

Earlier in January 2022 the Fed представила отчет по итогам изучения CBDC. The regulator noted that the advent of a sovereign digital form would help the U.S. dollar maintain its status as the world’s reserve currency.

Later Powell заявил that the Fed would not continue studying the possibility of launching CBDC without Congressional involvement.

On March 9, President Joe Biden подписал an executive order coordinating federal agencies in regulating cryptocurrencies. The document required agencies to consider the opportunities, benefits and risks of issuing a central bank digital currency.

Earlier the U.S. Treasury выпустил a report on the risks associated with stablecoins. The agency saw in “stablecoins” a threat to investors and market integrity, and called for strict legislative restrictions.

Fed Chair repeatedly stressed that for the United States it is important not to be first to issue a CBDC, but do it with the right approach.

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