INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
US president to sign executive order for a 'Digital Dollar', says White HouseUS President Joe Biden on Wednesday will order government
agencies to begin creating a digital US dollar, White House officials said.Amid the explosive rise of private cryptocurrencies like bitcoin,
the US effort will study benefits and potential risks while "placing urgency on research and development of a potential United States CBDC,"
according to a statement.The global rise of cryptocurrencies and the growing use of digital payments has fostered an interest in official
Major central banks worldwide are exploring the possibility: Nigeria launched its own virtual money in October, while El Salvador has
allowed bitcoin to serve as legal tender
India is set to launch a digital rupee this year, according to the finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman.The world's largest economy will
now join more than 100 countries exploring or have launched pilot programs with their own central bank digital currency (CBDC), including
China's digital yuan.Officials rejected the notion that Washington was late to the effort."The implications of potentially issuing a
digital dollar are profound," one official told reporters, stressing the crucial role of the American currency in the global economy."We've
got to be very, very deliberate about that analysis because the implications of our moving in this direction are profound for the country
to examine consumer protection, financial inclusion and use of digital assets for illicit activities.The United States "can move quickly,
but we can also move in a way that's smart, and that's inclusive," the official said.The officials downplayed competition from Beijing,
saying the US dollar "has been and will continue to be crucial to the stability of the international monetary system as a whole" and those
issued by foreign central banks "do not threaten this dominance."Explosive GrowthDigital assets, including cryptocurrencies, have seen
explosive growth in recent years, surpassing a $3 trillion market cap last November from just $14 billion just five years prior.The White
House said around 16 per cent of adult Americans -- approximately 40 million people -- have invested in, traded, or used
cryptocurrencies.However, "Without oversight, the explosive growth in cryptocurrency use would pose risks to Americans, to the stability of
our businesses, our financial system and our national security," the official said.Another official stressed the need to ensure all
Americans benefit from advances since "earlier forms of financial innovation have ended up hurting American families while making a small
group of people very rich."In January, the US Federal Reserve released a report noting that digital currencies could offer potential
benefits to American consumers and businesses but said it is not clear they would outweigh the potential risks.Under Biden's order, US
government agencies will look into preventing money laundering and efforts to use digital currencies to evade financial sanctions.But the
official said despite concerns; they have not been a "viable workaround" for Moscow to get around the "financial sanctions we've imposed
across the entire Russian economy" following the invasion of Ukraine.
