The Bank of England’s chief cashier is urging support to explore the launch of an official digital currency. Sarah John, who oversees the issuance of banknotes at England’s central bank, says it’s “crucial” to act on new opportunities with the emerging asset class. Further delays, she warns, will serve big tech players like Facebook, along with the private sector, that will be able to shape, control and dominate the new era of money.
In an interview with the Telegraph U.K., John says,
“We need to think as an institution about how to position ourselves to make sure society still has a broad range of payments that it can use with confidence. It is absolutely right that central banks think about whether a public sector or private sector would be best to provide a digital currency going forward.”
Meanwhile, European Central Bank president Christine LaGarde is calling on residents in the Eurozone to comment on the bank’s monetary strategy in light of external factors such as climate change, and the rapid disruption in banking, cross-border transactions and the payments industry due to digitalization.
Lagarde, who has repeatedly issued notices about the changing tide in the global financial system, is urging people to write in with their opinions.
In a new public service announcement, Lagarde says the ECB is using its listening portal to hear everyone’s views.
“We at the ECB have decided to review our monetary policy strategy. So, together with the 19 national central banks of the euro area, we will look at various issues including, in particular, what we mean by ‘price stability’.
But we also want to understand more about how other topics influence our job, like employment, like climate change, like digitalization.
The euro is a public good. The euro actually belongs to all of us. It belongs to you. So we need to hear from you in this strategy review. Stable prices help you make decisions in many aspects of your life, from saving to borrowing, and from spending to investing.”
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