Central banks race to launch CBDCs while struggling to attract users
Source: Bloomberg (paywall)
The CBDC push reveals genuine regulatory anxiety: USD-denominated stablecoins like USDC and USDT now move billions daily across borders with minimal friction, potentially eroding central bank control over domestic money supply and cross-border capital flows. Adoption data shows citizens and institutions have little incentive to switch. Existing stablecoins are faster, cheaper, and more liquid than government-issued digital currencies. CBDCs risk becoming expensive infrastructure few actually want to use, which explains why major deployments remain limited to pilots and interbank experiments rather than live consumer payments.