President Joe Biden on Wednesday ordered government agencies to begin work on creating a digital US dollar, weighing the risks and benefits of a move that could be a game changer for the global financial system.
Coming amid the explosive rise of private crypto currencies like bitcoin, the US effort will place “the highest urgency on research and development efforts into the potential design and deployment options of a United States” digital currency, according to an executive order signed by Biden.
“A United States CBDC may have the potential to support efficient and low-cost transactions, particularly for cross‑border funds transfers and payments, and to foster greater access to the financial system,” the order said, adding it could also be less risky than private digital assets. CBDC stands for central bank digital currency.
周三，美国总统乔·拜登下令政府机构开始创建数字美元，权衡可能改变全球金融体系游戏规则的举措的风险和收益。
根据拜登签署的一项行政命令，在比特币等私人加密货币爆炸式增长之际，美国的努力将“将最紧迫的研发工作放在美国数字货币的潜在设计和部署选项中”。
“美国 CBDC 可能有潜力支持高效和低成本的交易，特别是跨境资金转移和支付，并促进更多地进入金融系统，”该命令称，并补充说它的风险也可能更小而不是私人数字资产。 CBDC 代表中央银行数字货币。
The world’s largest economy will join more than 100 countries that are exploring or have launched pilot programs with their own central bank digital currency, including China’s digital yuan.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said agencies will “evaluate the potential financial stability risks of digital assets and assess whether appropriate safeguards are in place.”
And due to the global implications of using digital assets, Washington will work with other governments on the effort that “will also address risks related to illicit finance, protecting consumers and investors, and preventing threats to the financial system and broader economy,” Yellen said in a statement.
Governments and investors around the world rely on the US greenback as a secure investment, and the dollar is central to commerce as well, including to the global oil market.
White House economic adviser Brian Deese said on CNBC that “maintaining US global leadership” is a central goal of the effort, but noted the study will also look into “unintended consequences.”
这个世界上最大的经济体将加入 100 多个国家，这些国家正在探索或已经启动了自己的中央银行数字货币（包括中国的数字人民币）的试点项目。
财政部长珍妮特耶伦表示，各机构将“评估数字资产的潜在金融稳定风险，并评估是否有适当的保障措施到位。”
鉴于使用数字资产的全球影响，华盛顿将与其他政府合作，“还将解决与非法金融相关的风险，保护消费者和投资者，并防止对金融体系和更广泛的经济的威胁，”耶伦说在一份声明中。
世界各地的政府和投资者都依赖美元作为一种安全的投资，而美元也是商业的核心，包括全球石油市场。
白宫经济顾问布赖恩·迪斯在 CNBC 上表示，“保持美国的全球领导地位”是这项努力的核心目标，但指出该研究还将调查“意外后果”。
– ‘Very deliberate’ –
Mark Sobel, a former Treasury official who is now a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the order is a “welcome development” in preparing the United States for the “future of money.”
He called for the establishment of a “legislative framework” to handle digital assets like crypto currencies and CBDCs, which could ensure financial stability without compromising innovation.
Biden’s executive order will have agencies including the Treasury Department examine issues including consumer protection, financial inclusion and use of digital assets for illicit activities.
The reporting deadlines are staggered, ranging from 30 to 180 days, and will include consultations with the private sector.
The United States “can move quickly, but we can also move in a way that’s smart and that’s inclusive,” a senior administration official told reporters.
Administration officials have downplayed competition from Beijing, with one saying the US dollar “has been and will continue to be crucial to the stability of the international monetary system as a whole” and those issued by foreign central banks “do not threaten this dominance.”
In addition to China, Nigeria in October launched its own virtual money, while El Salvador has allowed bitcoin to serve as legal tender.
– Need for oversight –
Digital assets, including crypto currencies, have seen explosive growth in recent years, surpassing a $3 trillion market cap last November, from $14 billion just five years prior.
The White House said around 16 percent of adult Americans — approximately 40 million people — have invested in, traded or used crypto currencies.
However, “without oversight, the explosive growth in crypto currency use would pose risks to Americans, to the stability of our businesses, our financial system and our national security,” the official said.
Another official stressed the need to ensure all Americans benefit from advances, since “earlier forms of financial innovation have ended up hurting American families while making a small group of people very rich.”
The Federal Reserve released a report in January noting that digital currencies could offer potential benefits to American consumers and businesses, but said it is not clear they would outweigh the potential risks.
The executive order encourages the Fed to continue that study.
There are concerns that digital currencies could be used to evade sanctions like those imposed on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, but the official said they have not been a “viable workaround” for the “financial sanctions we’ve imposed across the entire Russian economy.”
- “非常刻意” -
现任美国战略与国际研究中心高级顾问的前财政部官员马克·索贝尔表示，该命令是美国为“货币的未来”做好准备的“受欢迎的发展”。
他呼吁建立一个“立法框架”来处理加密货币和 CBDC 等数字资产，这可以在不损害创新的情况下确保金融稳定。
拜登的行政命令将要求财政部等机构审查消费者保护、金融包容性和将数字资产用于非法活动等问题。
报告期限错开，从 30 天到 180 天不等，其中包括与私营部门的磋商。
一位高级政府官员告诉记者，美国“可以迅速采取行动，但我们也可以采取一种聪明且包容的方式”。
政府官员淡化了来自北京的竞争，其中一位说美元“一直并将继续对整个国际货币体系的稳定至关重要”，而外国央行发行的货币“不会威胁到这种主导地位”。
除中国外，尼日利亚在 10 月推出了自己的虚拟货币，而萨尔瓦多则允许比特币作为法定货币。
– 需要监督 –
近年来，包括加密货币在内的数字资产出现了爆炸式增长，去年 11 月的市值从五年前的 140 亿美元超过了 3 万亿美元。
白宫表示，大约 16% 的成年美国人（约 4000 万人）投资、交易或使用了加密货币。
然而，“如果没有监督，加密货币使用的爆炸式增长将对美国人、我们的业务稳定、我们的金融体系和我们的国家安全构成风险，”这位官员说。
另一位官员强调有必要确保所有美国人都能从进步中受益，因为“早期形式的金融创新最终伤害了美国家庭，同时让一小部分人变得非常富有。”
美联储在 1 月份发布了一份报告，指出数字货币可能为美国消费者和企业带来潜在利益，但表示尚不清楚它们是否会超过潜在风险。
行政命令鼓励美联储继续这项研究。
有人担心数字货币可能被用来逃避制裁，比如俄罗斯因入侵乌克兰而对俄罗斯实施的制裁，但这位官员表示，对于“我们对整个俄罗斯经济实施的金融制裁”，数字货币并不是“可行的变通办法” 。