Digital Currency or Digital Control?

Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) are on the rise. In an attempt to reinvent money as we know it, central bankers and other policymakers around the world are currently researching, developing, and launching CBDCs. The prospect has caught the attention of the president of the United States, Congress, international institutions, and government contractors, but the public has largely been left out of this development. That needs to change.

CBDCs are not simply “another form of money.” Rather, CBDCs pose significant risks to financial privacy, freedom, and markets. Furthermore, CBDCs would open the economy to new cybersecurity risks while also jeopardizing the function and independence of central banks themselves. Yet, what is probably worst of all is that CBDCs fail to offer any unique benefits that offset these costs and justify the government’s intervention in the market.

In Digital Currency or Digital Control, monetary and financial economic expert Nicholas Anthony provides everything you need to get up to speed on CBDCs so that you can know what is at stake. From the myths of CBDC benefits to the threats posed by CBDC risks, this book will help you decode what CBDC means for the future of money.

“In Digital Currency or Digital Control, Nicholas Anthony masterfully dissects the rise of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and their potential implications. This book is a timely wake‐​up call, revealing how CBDCs threaten to undermine financial privacy, personal freedom, and market stability. Anthony’s rigorous analysis and compelling arguments make this an indispensable read for anyone concerned about the encroaching digital transformation of money and the erosion of individual privacy.”
—Naomi Brockwell, tech journalist and creator of NBTV.media

“Beautifully written and laced with the author’s laconic wit, Nick Anthony’s book Digital Currency or Digital Control? Decoding CBDC and the Future of Money provides US policymakers and their staff and advisors with all they need to know about central bank digital currencies and their potential to create an authoritarian dystopia controlled by the Federal Reserve. Everyone in the beltway area working on money and banking policy should read it carefully, from the president and the Fed chair down. Central bank digital currencies are a truly terrible idea that have no place in a free society.”
—Kevin Dowd, professor of finance and economics, Durham University

“This book is going to help many policymakers and congressional leaders finally make sense of the dangers of CBDCs. Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa have all undertaken varying levels of CBDC development, with Nigeria being the first African country to launch a CBDC, the e‑Naira, in 2021. The e‑Naira’s frequent technical issues, lack of public transaction data, ID‐​based tiered withdrawal limits, and low adoption rates not only raise questions about its use but also its potential impact. Further, these challenges show that the CBDCs have a flawed premise that seeks to use a democratic technology to further centralize government power. As currently designed, CBDCs are a threat to the financial freedom and human rights of all citizens.”
—Charlene Fadirepo, CEO, Mango Digital Strategies

“Nick Anthony has written a critical primer to the unfolding evolution of currency, as it continues its evolution from a paper or metal bearer instrument with privacy and freedom protections to an electronic mechanism of surveillance and control. More than 100 governments are experimenting with CBDCs today, and dozens have already built them or are already rolling them out to the public. For hundreds of millions of people, CBDCs are not some future threat, but a current danger. The world of money with insta‐​surveillance, blacklists, expiration dates, calorie counts, and political on‐​and‐​off switches is here and this book is a valuable resource to help us understand why we must fight back.”
—Alex Gladstein, chief strategy officer, Human Rights Foundation

Nicholas Anthony is a policy analyst at the Cato Institute’s Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives and a fellow at the Human Rights Foundation (HRF). Anthony’s research covers a wide range of topics within the field of monetary and financial economics, including central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), financial privacy, cryptocurrency, and the use of money in society. He has testified before Congress, and his work has been published at the American Institute for Economic Research and in the Wall Street Journal, MarketWatch, Business Insider, and numerous other outlets. Anthony also maintains the HRF CBDC Tracker, which documents CBDC development and civil liberties concerns around the world.

Originally from Baltimore, Anthony received a BS in economics and business administration from Towson University and an MA in economics from George Mason University.