A retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) is electronic central bank money that – just like cash – is directly available to consumers and non-financial corporations. The question of whether central banks should issue a retail CBDC is attracting increasing attention. Surveys indicate that 80% of central banks are engaging in work on the topic (Barotini and Holden 2019, Boar et al. 2020) and over 30 central banks have already launched research or design reports (see a companion Vox column here, as well as Kiff et al. 2020 and Group of Central Banks 2020). But what are the specific problems that such a retail CBDC ... (full story)