Texas senator Ted Cruz is warning of the dangers behind the adoption of a central bank digital currency (CBDC).
In a new interview at a Bitcoin (BTC) policy summit hosted by Swan Bitcoin, Cruz says a CBDC gives the government too much control over people’s currency.
“I’m very concerned about the risk of a CBDC. President Biden, early in his presidency, issued an executive order directing the Federal Reserve to study creating a central bank digital currency. And the New York branch of the Fed is actively working on doing exactly that. I think that’s exceptionally dangerous.
We see China moving forward with the intention of using a CBDC to destroy all the value of Bitcoin, to destroy anonymity, to destroy decentralization. Their objective is precisely the opposite of a distributed ledger system. They want a centralized ledger that the government has complete visibility into and complete control over. And I think that is profoundly dangerous.
I’ve introduced legislation to prohibit the Fed or the federal government from creating a CBDC. I don’t want the government having control over your finances.”
Cruz says that those in the government opposing Bitcoin are the same ones pushing for a CBDC because they do not want to give up the ability to monitor and control people’s finances.
“By the way, the same people that want a CBDC, they hate Bitcoin and they hate cash. Let’s be clear. They don’t like cash for exactly the reason I like cash, because it is not subject to centralized control. It is not subject to constant surveillance.”
The Republican senator says that if the US does move forward with a CBDC it should be up to the US Congress to vote on the plan since they are held accountable by voters.
“I hope we see growing resistance to a CBDC. I am very worried that we will see, even in the next couple of years, the Fed roll it out and not wait for Congress to act. At a minimum, before we did a CBDC, which as I said would be a terrible idea, but at a minimum, if we were to do it, it should be Congress making that decision elected by the people, not Federal Reserve governors that have no accountability to the American people just by fiat decreeing a new form of currency.”
Cruz also reveals he is investing in Bitcoin and currently holds a “little more” than two BTC, saying he believes the king crypto is a store of value in times of inflation.
“I am incredibly excited and incredibly bullish on Bitcoin… I think one of the attractions to Bitcoin, certainly for me, but for many, is as a hedge against inflation… I think it is also powerful in that it is decentralized, in that it is far less susceptible to government control.”
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