Microsoft chief opposes private digital currencies

Tech companies should not issue currencies, leaving this mission to the state. This was stated by Microsoft president Brad Smith, according to Bloomberg.

During an online conference organized by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), he said:

“Monetary issuance should almost unambiguously be controlled by an entity that bears responsibility to society and truly thinks only about public interests, which means the government.”

In 2019, Facebook launched a project to issue a global digital currency pegged to fiat money, Libra, which alarm regulators.

In December 2020, the Libra Association changed its name to Diem Association, thereby renaming the future stablecoin. Facebook confirmed plans to launch Diem in 2021.

However, Smith argues that money should be issued by those who have done this for centuries. The company he leads has no plans regarding digital currencies, he added:

“We are not a bank, and we do not want to become one or to compete with our clients—financial institutions.”

As BIS data show, most central banks are exploring various uses of national digital currencies (CBDCs).

China is already conducting mass testing of the digital yuan, and the Bahamas has launched the Sand Dollar.

The head of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde, said the regulator will not rush the launch of its own CBDC. If a decision is made, it could take two to four years.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said regulating stablecoins is more important than issuing a digital dollar in the United States. In his words, U.S. officials are not eager to be the first to issue a CBDC, because they have already been trailblazers by creating the global reserve currency.

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