U.S. Dollar on Becoming a Digital Currency

Digital Dollar Foundation Cofounder Giancarlo relayed his concern that the United States needs to take the lead on the research and development of CBDC or central bank-issued digital currency, as it has partaken in other technological innovations. Since the digital economy is growing really fast, this will pave the way for the U.S to be the primary digital money to use on today’s electronic transactions.

CBDCs are the digital equivalent of actual currency and coins, enabling owners direct digital access to their bank account and conveniently use it for electronic payments.

This project’s objective is to generate data that will help U.S. lawmakers understand and eventually develop a digital currency. Accenture, financial firms, NGOs and retailers to name a few, will be funding the trial.

The Digital Dollar Project is a partnership between Digital Dollar Foundation and Accenture, aiming to widen the research and debate on the Central Bank Digital Currency in other countries around the globe. The pilot programs will be introduced in the coming two months. Chairman Powell released a statement last week that it is critical to have a substantial process on the digital dollar but that the Fed won’t be joining the movement anytime soon.

At this time, the U.S. Federal Reserve has already conducted its own research and experimentation on the technology as a safety precaution. They aim to construct and test a speculative central bank-issued digital currency and use cases behind a Fed-issued digital dollar. It has teamed up with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as the pioneer in building the platform.

As reported by Yahoo Finance, Accenture’s Senior Director David Treat stated, “What we’re excited to do is bring that global experience, working with the world central banks to bear, for U.S. progress and dialogue.”

Accenture has helped countries like Canada, Singapore and France to paved the way on numerous CBDC projects, as the organization believes CBDC can soon co-exist with physical cash and coins.