Before Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) became headline news, we at Schnapper-Casteras PLLC were researching and publishing about them, and conferring with CBDC stakeholders: at central banks in the United States and abroad, on the Hill, with securities and commodities regulators, investment firms, software developers, business schools, and think-tanks. We were early, and we were right: central banks are going to offer digital money.
Today, we are excited to announce the launch of a new practice area in this emerging field of CBDCs. If you are a public or private financial institution, a technology company, a not-for-profit, or another stakeholder in the global transition to digital currency, we offer a combination of legal services, policy analysis, and strategic counseling.
A recent survey found that 80% of central banks — including the Bank of England, the European Central Bank, and the Bank of Japan — are researching, piloting, or planning to launch their own digital currency networks in the coming years. China’s CBDC may launch this year.
CBDCs implicate complex, inter-disciplinary questions across law, policy, technology, and economics: the balance of powers between monetary policymakers like Congress, the Federal Reserve, and other central banks; foreign policy and currency competition; technological features and interoperability; national security, cyber-security, and data privacy protections. We can help you plan accordingly.
We look forward to hearing from you — and in the meantime, please find a few examples of our past writings on CBDCs and digital money:
• Key Questions on Central Bank Digital Currencies (Dec. 2019)
• Developing Digital Dollars (Oct. 2019)
• Libra’s Legal Challenges (June 2019)
• Central Banks are Planning for Digital Money (Jan. 2019)