US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell heard Senate Banks, Housing and Urban Affairs Committees on Capitol Hill, Washington on February 11, 2025. I testify before.
Craig Hudson | Reuters
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Tuesday insisted that the central bank would not develop its own digital currency as long as he is in charge.
Powell ends with years of speculation on whether he will join some of his global counterparts, including China, in the development of formal cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and many of its peers, the Senate. He said the project would not move forward.
“As long as I’m the chairman of the Federal Reserve system that I never have a central bank’s digital currency, can I have your commitment?” Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) said. I asked Powell in my six-month testimony from the chairman regarding the matter.
“Yes,” Powell replied.
“Thank you, I think that’s very important,” Moreno said. “I’m so happy to hear you say that.”
Powell’s term as Fed chief ends in May 2026.
The Fed has been investigating the issue for at least four years and published extensive research in 2022 detailing its advantages and disadvantages without drawing conclusions.
Over the years, multiple staff have raised concerns, but in most cases they say there is no clear need for CBDCs, citing concerns about privacy and other issues. Powell also emphasized that creating the CBDC required legislative action from Congress.
In the meantime, the central bank has launched the FedNow Payments system. This basically addresses a number of issues that Fed-backed cryptocurrencies also take on.
Moreno asked Powell to continue working with FedNow to make 24-hour remittances more widely available.
