A non-profit organization is developing a special tool that will track potential problems with civil liberties due to the development of central bank digital currencies (CBDC) in different countries.
As part of the research program, an online tracker was created and tested, containing informational materials and tracking the impact of CBDCs on civil liberties and human rights.
The tool was developed by the Human Rights Foundation (HRF), a non-profit organization that funded the project. The tracker was designed by:
- Nicholas Anthony, Policy Analyst at the Cato Institute’s Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives;
- Janine Römer, Independent Investigative Journalist, Privacy Researcher, and Member of the Board of Directors of Open Sats;
- Matthew Mezinskis, Corporate Finance Specialist and Host of the Crypto Voices podcast.
It’s worth noting that Cato Institute analysts were the ones who previously emphasized that CBDC “threatens Americans’ core freedoms.”
According to Alex Gladstein, HRF’s Chief Strategy Officer, the online resource will describe the progress of CBDCs around the world and identify civil liberties risks. The official website states that the initiative is particularly important because CBDCs create a direct link between citizens and the central bank, potentially posing many human rights issues if implemented.
The tracker’s full functionality will be launched by the end of this year.
The vast majority of the world’s central banks are in the CBDC research phase. On the other hand, financial institutions are actively experimenting with the interoperability of various digital currency projects, pointing to the need to consider specific factors in the development of CBDCs. Only a few analysts point out that public digital currencies pose a threat to user privacy and can be used to control payments.
