
While bitcoin is attracting attention again, the head of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) was in Seoul to promote a new currency: the CBDC.
Bankers and AI
In his speech entitled “The future monetary system: from vision to reality”Agustins Carstens immediately tipped his hat to AI:
“Rapid advances in computing power and new algorithms drawing on vast reservoirs of data have given rise to systems so powerful and vibrant that they raise fundamental questions about how we will work and function as as society in the future. »
He then lamented that things aren’t moving so fast in the world of finance:
“In the field of AI, progress today is measured in months, even weeks. In the financial system, they are measured in years, even decades. »
This interest of the BIS in AI should be compared with that of the IMF which published a guide on CBDCs for policy makers around the world.
For IMF President Kristalina Georgieva, “CBDCs could improve financial inclusion by providing rapid and accurate assessment of credit scores based on various data.”
What is the goal exactly? Condition the loan on personal data? What data specifically?
Medical history, internet browsing history, dating history, travel history? All brought together under the aegis of the biometric digital identity dear to Bill Gates?
Even ECB President Christine Lagarde revealed in September that she wanted to use artificial intelligence “to better understand inflation and better monitor systemic banks”.
Ultimately, some fear that, like Russian MP Anatoly Aksakov, the CBDC will end up making banks redundant.
“Decisions will be made by a robot [IA]. Maybe a bank is no longer needed [pour octroyer un prêt] given that the digital ruble will be very technological”he predicted.
A “unified ledger” to control them all…
For Agustin Carstens, the archaism of the financial system “slows down growth and hinders the granting of credit”. In question, the way in which the “financial systems were built in separate silos”.
As a result, transactions are “complex, slow and expensive”. “Cross-border transactions are even worse, because systems must be connected by international messaging networks [SWIFT] which are added to the national networks. »
These inefficiencies are such that they are in the business of “unregulated shadow intermediaries”. That is to say bitcoin (which the BIS monitors very closely via its Atlas system…).
Faced with this competition, the banker insisted that we must abandon the old pipes of Finance and embrace CBDCs:
“I am convinced that we need a leap forward. And fortunately, recent technological advances make this leap possible. »
These advances being:
-Massive computing power.
-Instant and cheap communication systems.
-Nearly universal internet connectivity and smartphone access.
-Computer security, essential for the protection of privacy.
-The possibility of representing assets digitally, using tokens.
-Rapid progress in artificial intelligence.
Exploiting these technological advances would make it possible to build a financial system “individual-centered”And “working seamlessly”.
Mr. Carstens dreams of a “unified ledger”. An integrated system allowing “instant settlement of any transaction”. To do this, “programmable currencies” will be needed. and “tokenized assets”.
CBDC vs Bitcoin
In short, the Bank for International Settlements wants to oversee a monetary system based on CBDCs (Central Bank Digital Currency).
A “wholesale” CBDC for payments between banks. And then a “retail” CBDC for deposits in commercial banks.
Mr. Carstens assures that nothing will change for ordinary people, except that the CBDC will have “the added benefit of programmability”.
Benefit for whom? A programmable currency can only be a conditioned currency. To echo its own past statements, the key difference with the CBDC is that the central bank will have “absolute control” of the rules governing its use:
Let’s also not forget that CBDC is designed to replace cash. This is the dark design: moving slowly towards a society of total surveillance and rationing. This is essentially what German MP Joana Cotar said last week in the Bundestag:
“Tomorrow, every transaction will be monitored in the name of transparency. In China, CBDC allows people to be controlled. You have to comply with the state to be able to use your money. This is called social credit. The digital euro would allow the same thing to be done. The State may prevent us from booking a flight if our CO2 budget is exhausted or from making donations to organizations that are inconvenient for them. The unvaccinated will have their money tied up in restaurants during a pandemic. A digital nightmare. »
Bitcoin acts as a bulwark against possible Chinese-style abuses that the end of cash would allow. As a store of value, Bitcoin would also become a very popular means of payment.
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