- Central bank-issued digital currencies can be controlled by the government
- Support for the CBDC Anti-Surveillance bill is growing
Congressman Tom Emmer, who introduced the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Bill, cautioned that a central bank digital currency could allow the government to monitor and limit financial transactions, Bitcoin.com wrote.
The CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act is supported by 75 Congresspersons out of a total of 535. Emmer warned that central bank-issued digital currencies can be controlled by the government unless they are specifically tailored to imitate cash.
Support is small, but growing
Albeit still small, support for the CBDC Anti-Surveillance bill is growing, as Republican Congressman Tom Emmer has shared on social media. If passed into law, the piece of legislation would limit the Federal Reserve’s ability to offer natural persons direct services and use a central bank digital currency.
Limitations on government powers
More specifically, the bill would stop the Fed and the Federal Open Market Committee from enforcing monetary policy using any central bank digital currency. Moreover, it would prohibit any Federal Reserve bank from offering someone products or services directly, maintaining an account on their behalf, or issuing them a central bank digital currency directly.
Emmer introduced the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act in January 2022 and then again in early September 2023 with 50 Congresspersons’ support. This number had increased to 60 by Sept. 20, when the House Financial Services Committee approved his bill.
CBDCs: Pros and cons
According to Emmer, CBDCs differ from decentralized cryptocurrencies in that governments design and issue them. They are transacted on a digital ledger, which the respective government controls. Leading financial institutions like the Central Bank of Qatar are working on introducing them.
However, they have their fair share of critics. According to Cecilia Skingsley, first deputy governor of Swedish central bank Sveriges Riksbank, they aren’t going to be a panacea for cross-border payments. One possible problem could involve interoperability between the payment systems of different countries.
