Free Republic

The EU’s plan to watch what you spend.and modernization. But, much like the Chinese model that seems to inspire ECB President Christine Lagarde, what is at stake is not just technology: it is the risk of turning a payment instrument into a mechanism of control over every citizen’s transactions. Across the Atlantic, the United States took the opposite path: it legalized stablecoins and banned a centralized digital dollar, strengthening freedom and competition instead of state control.On September 26, the European Central Bank announced what had long been anticipated: it will conduct new experiments on what can be achieved with the...

The European Central Bank is inviting experts in identification and authentication to contribute to the development of rules for the digital euro. A ‘workstream’ is being set up to establish identification and authentication requirements for the digital currency, with the goal of enabling best-in-class user experience and security. Impact assessments for various existing approaches to identification and authentication will also be carried out. The EU’s planned digital currency is expected to be stored in the EU Digital Identity Wallet, with support for peer-to-peer transactions. The Chair of the Rulebook Development Group is setting up several dedicated workstreams to support the...