TL; DR
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The US House of Representatives has passed a bill that aims to ban CBDCs (aka centralized cryptocurrencies that are owned by the government and can be ‘switched off’)… now it just needs to pass the Senate.
Full story
You know those recurring nightmares we all have?
The one where all your friends and family are trapped in a burning building, while no one answers your calls to help you help them?
No? Only U.S. Foreign.
Well, we feel a similar panic when we think about central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).
If you’re not familiar with the idea of CBDCs, the basic idea is this:
It is a government-owned/issued stablecoin denominated in US dollars.
That sounds innocent at first, but it opens the door for some pretty dystopian concepts to work their way into our reality.
The biggest and most concerning are:
A centralized programmable money would allow the government to essentially ‘turn off your money’ (not to mention keep track of every cent you earn/spend without having to serve a warrant on your bank).
We don’t say them wouldonly that they could be – and that’s scary enough in itself.
The good news is:
Congress is fighting it! In fact, the U.S. House of Representatives just passed a bill that seeks to ban CBDCs all together.
Now it still has to pass the Senate, which is a bigger task by comparison – but worth celebrating regardless.
Because it finally feels like someone (Congress) is acknowledging the burning building filled with our friends and family (CBDCs).