Patrick Harker, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, a member of the US Federal Reserve, called the "inevitable" transition to digital currencies . His statement was quoted by Reuters on October 2.
Harker agreed that in the future, central banks, including the US Federal Reserve, will somehow issue digital currency, but warned that the United States does not intend to be the country to take such a step first.
Speaking at a conference of members of the banking community, Harker said:
“Honestly, I don’t think that we, as a nation, should be the first to do this.
Digital currencies are inevitable … I think we should start looking at this phenomenon. ”
Harker gave such a comment, answering a question about the Fed's decision to create its own instant payment system. Mentioning this service, FedNow, which is currently under development, he noted:
“I'm interested in the next five years after that. What will be the next step? I think the new word will be digital currency. ”
According to him, one must take into account the role of the dollar as a world reserve currency and the need to test new technologies.
At the same time, Harker admitted that at present, most Fed banks do not share his opinion, but his staff began research on this issue, and early next year he will hold a small conference to discuss this topic with the scientific community.
In June this year, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the United States is far from issuing digital currency, as technology is in its infancy. Other Fed officials said the benefits of a digital currency issued by a central bank are "not obvious."
Recently, the Fed and other central banks have been discussing the growth in the number of cryptocurrencies, and are studying how blockchain technology can change the traditional models of central banks.
Publication date 10/03/2019
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