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Central bank digital currency: Why it matters and why not
Far into the 20th century, central banks commonly offered accounts not only to a select group of financial institutions but also to non-banks. This liberal approach has given way to a monetary arrangement where access to electronic central bank money(‘reserves’) is generally restricted to banks. When households or non-financial firms pay electronically, they use privately issued money (e.g. bank deposits), not central bank money. This arrangement is increasingly being questioned. Following Tobin (1985), many have proposed a form of digital central bank money for use by the general public– ‘reserves for ... (full story)