Challenges in U.S. Real-Time Payment Systems

Nicholas Anthony is a policy analyst at the Cato Institute’s Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives, a fellow at the Human Rights Foundation, and is also a returning guest to the podcast. Nick rejoins David on Macro Musings to talk about a new book he has authored titled, *Digital Currency or Digital Control: Decoding CBDC and the Future of Money.* Specifically, Nicholas and David discuss the history of CBDCs, their challenges and drawbacks, Nick’s recommendations for the future, and a lot more.

Transcript for this week’s episode.

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Nick’s Cato profile

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Related Links:

*Digital Currency or Digital Control: Decoding CBDC and the Future of Money* by Nicholas Anthony

*Nicholas Anthony on the Current Prospects and Legislative Developments Surrounding CBDC* by Macro Musings

*Macroeconomic Modelling of CBDC: A Critical Review* by Ulrich Bindseil and Richard Senner

*Ulrich Bindseil on Central Bank Operating Systems* by Macro Musings

Timestamps:

(00:00:00) – Intro

(00:01:50) – The Future Prospects of CBDC: From Congress to the White House

(00:07:35) – The History of CBDCs

(00:11:19) – Breaking Down the Three Types of CBDCs

(00:17:22) – The Challenges and Drawbacks of CBDCs

(00:25:42) – The Buffer Between CBDCs and Privacy

(00:31:00) – Wholesale CBDCs, Real-time Payments, and Cross-border Payments

(00:41:06) – The Potential Destabilizing Effects of CBDCs

(00:46:12) – The Pros and Cons of a CBDC for the Fed

(00:53:23) – Responding to Pro-CBDC Arguments

(00:59:05) – Recommendations for the Future of CBDCs

(01:01:92) – Outro