TECHNICAL EVALUATION FOR A U.S. CENTRAL BANK DIGITAL CURRENCY SYSTEM

"A Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) is a digital form of a country’s sovereign currency. 1 If the United States issued a CBDC, this new type of central bank money may provide a range of benefits for American consumers, investors, and businesses. For example, a U.S. CBDC might enable transactions that are more efficient and less expensive, particularly for cross-border funds transfers. However, there are also potential risks to consider. A U.S. CBDC might affect everything ranging from the stability of the financial system to the protection of sensitive data. Recognizing these potential upsides and downsides, the Biden-Harris Administration is committed to further exploring the implications of, and options for, issuing a CBDC.

On March 9, 2022, President Biden signed Executive Order (EO) 14067, Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets, placing the highest urgency on research and development efforts into the potential design and deployment options of a U.S. Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).2 EO 14067 further directed the Federal government to “prioritize timely assessments of potential benefits and risks under various designs to ensure that the United States remains a leader in the international financial system.” To help advance this directive, Section 5(b)(ii) of EO 14067 ordered the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the Chief Technology Officer of the United States – in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Chair of the Federal Reserve, and the heads of other relevant agencies – to submit to the President a technical evaluation for a U.S. CBDC system, should one be proposed.

This report begins by laying out the policy objectives for a U.S. CBDC system, outlined in EO 14067 and developed in further detail through an interagency process led by the National Economic Council and the National Security Council. These policy objectives reflect the Administration’s ongoing commitment to develop and use technology in accordance with democratic values. This report then analyzes the technical design choices for a U.S. CBDC system, focusing on how those choices would impact the policy objectives for a U.S. CBDC system. Next, this report estimates the feasibility of building a minimum viable product for a U.S. CBDC system, based on hypothetical combinations of technical design choices. Finally, this report assesses how a U.S. CBDC system may impact Federal processes, focusing on cybersecurity and privacy, customer experience, and social safety net programs..."
Central Bank Digital Currency