In January of this year, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System issued a research and analysis paper titled Money and Payments: The US Dollar in the Age of Digital Transformation, in which the Fed explores potential benefits and risks of a US central bank digital currency (CBDC). The Fed defines a CBDC for purposes…

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Legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives seeking “to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to develop and pilot digital dollar technologies that replicate the privacy-respecting features of physical cash.” H.R. 7231 — cited as the Electronic Currency and Secure Hardware Act or simply the ECASH Act — was introduced March 28 by…

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U.S. consumer price increases quickened in March, underscoring ongoing inflationary pressures as supply chain disruptions and shortages lingered across the economy. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 8.5% in March compared to the same month last year, according to the latest report released Tuesday. That marked the fastest rise since…

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