Definition
A Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) is a digital liability of a central bank, distinct from private stablecoins or commercial bank deposits. Policy debates center on financial privacy, monetary sovereignty, and competition with private digital dollars.
US Policy (June 2026)
- 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (H.R. 6644): Bans Federal Reserve from issuing or creating a CBDC or substantially similar digital asset until Dec 31, 2030
- House: 358-32 (June 24); Senate: 85-5 (June 22)
- Carve-out for open, permissionless, private dollar-denominated stablecoins
- Revives Tom Emmer Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act language
- Codifies Trump Jan 2025 executive order opposing retail CBDC
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As of June 24, 2026, Trump canceled signing ceremony pending SAVE America Act; bill not yet signed — pocket passage possible within 10 days if Congress in session
EU Digital Euro (Sept 2026)
- 2026-09-15: european-central-bank merchant pilot call for e/m-commerce; H2 2027 start (2026-09-15-ecb-digital-euro-merchant-pilot, digital-euro)
Global Contrast
- US: Anti-CBDC moratorium; favors private stablecoins (CLARITY Act ~60% passage odds per Galaxy Digital)
- EU: mica framework enabling regulated CASP passporting (openpayd, Ripple, Bitcoin Suisse)
Related
- stablecoin
- stablecoin-regulation
- regulatory-compliance
- crypto
- digital-euro
- european-central-bank
- mica
- us-cbdc-ban-housing-bill-2030