- House Financial Services Committee approves bill to prevent American banks from issuing digital currencies.
- Majority Whip Tom Emmer leads a Republican-backed effort to prevent CBDC issuance.
- Concerns have been raised about CBDC’s potential for financial surveillance and potential misuse in the United States.
The House Financial Services Committee recently approved a bill to prevent American central banks from issuing central bank digital currencies (CBDC).
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer introduced the Central Bank Digital Currency Anti-Surveillance State Act. Fox Business reported that the bill is Republican-backed and aims to prevent the Federal Reserve and its member banks from issuing a digital version of the dollar.
Emmer shared that this bill has the support of 60 members of Congress and several groups, such as the Independent Community Bankers Association, the American Bankers Association, and the Blockchain Association.
The bill’s objective is simple, according to Emmer. He stated, “This bill is simple; it halts the efforts of this Administrative State under President Biden from issuing a financial surveillance tool that will undermine the American way of life.”
The CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act stated that:
A Federal Reserve Bank shall not—offer products or services directly to an individual; maintain an account on behalf of an individual; or issue a central bank digital currency or any digital asset that is substantially similar under any other name or label—directly to an individual.
The Republican Party believes CBDC is government-controlled programmable money. He shared that if a digital currency isn’t designed to emulate cash, it could allow the federal government to surveil Americans’ transactions. He called this “alarming” and “downright un-American.”
Emmer added that there are already examples of governments “weaponizing” their financial system against their citizens. He alleged that China’s Communist Party is using CBDCs to track the spending habits of its citizens. Emmer said, “If China embraces it, you know it’s something worth standing against in this country.”
Previously, the U.S. Presidential candidate, Ron DeSantis, declared his intention to ban CBDC in America on his first day in office if elected in the upcoming 2024 presidential elections. DeSantis shared similar concerns with Emmer, as he believes there’s a potential misuse of CBDC that could threaten American liberty.
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