# Central Bank Digital Currency: Assessing the Risks and Dispelling the Myths 

In the case of a CBDC, however, the digital dollars would be a liability of the central bank itself.

November 18, 2022 • Working Paper No. 70 

By [Nicholas Anthony](https://www.cato.org/people/nicholas-anthony) and [Norbert J. Michel](https://www.cato.org/people/norbert-michel) 

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Central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs, have the potential to radically transform the American financial system. They are no longer merely academic musings. Rather, CBDCs have gained the attention of politicians, central bankers, the tech industry, and even the broader public. Government officials, in the United States and abroad, are now actively working to implement CBDCs and solidify government control over payments systems. But this experiment should be left on the drawing board because CBDCs ultimately usurp the private sector and endanger Americans’ core freedoms. They have no place in the American economy. Congress should explicitly prohibit the Federal Reserve (the Fed) and the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) from issuing a CBDC in any form.

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##### Central Bank Digital Currency: Assessing the Risks and Dispelling the Myths 

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##### About the Authors 

[![Nicholas Anthony Cropped](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2025-02/NicholasAnthony-cropped.jpg?itok=f4HYrot7)](/people/nicholas-anthony) 

##### [Nicholas Anthony](/people/nicholas-anthony)

Research Fellow, Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives

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](https://x.com/EconWithNick) 

[![Norbert Michel Cropped](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2025-01/norbert-m-cropped.jpg?itok=8WIx97Dk)](/people/norbert-michel) 

##### [Norbert J. Michel](/people/norbert-michel)

Vice President and Director, Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives, Cato Institute

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](https://x.com/norbertjmichel) 

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