About us

Our Mission

The Digital Dollar Project is a neutral, non-profit forum focused on exploring digital innovation in money and preserving the role of the U.S. Dollar in a world of decentralized and centralized sovereign and non-sovereign digital currency networks. The Digital Dollar Project believes that the U.S. should only consider issuing a digital dollar once key design elements are properly understood and democratically resolved relating to privacy, security, distribution, and economic stability. The Digital Dollar Project encourages the U.S. to assert principled leadership in research, experimentation at home, and digital currency standard setting abroad that is consistent with U.S. norms, values, and rule of law.

“The United States must become involved now if we expect our values to be incorporated into the future of money. Now is the time to be a decisive voice and ensure that our values — not only privacy but also the principles of free enterprise, free speech, and democracy — are embedded in the future of money.”

Why Now

Throughout its history, the U.S. has been a leader in innovation and building systems for the next generation. Whether launching the space program or building the Internet, U.S. technological initiatives are typically undertaken through a series of partnerships between the private and public sectors. These endeavors incorporate and reflect longstanding U.S. values of economic stability, technological innovation, individual liberty and privacy, free enterprise, and the rule of law.

 

A new technological age is unfolding, bringing with it the digitization of things of value that can be tokenized, programmable, and decentralized. Across the globe, governments and private entities are experimenting with tokenized commodities, contracts, legal titles and, most critically, commercial and central bank digital currencies. This wave of digital currency innovation is still gaining momentum. The questions for the U.S. are what role it will play in this innovation and to what degree will its core values be brought to bear.

 

We see a critical opportunity for the U.S. to be a leader in advancing digital currency innovations, which would help to ensure that our democratic values are sustained and enshrined in the future of money. We encourage the public and private sectors to collaborate and explore appropriate solutions in key areas of concern in the future of digital money to the American public, such as privacy, cyber resilience, financial inclusion, and interoperability.

In May 2020, “Exploring a U.S. CBDC” was initially published at a time when CBDCs were a relatively novel concept, introducing a “champion model” for the digital dollar, accompanied by eight key tenets for public discussion and consideration. Since its inception, the Digital Dollar Project has consistently anchored its investigative and developmental efforts in the champion model to pressure test the feasibility of building a U.S. CBDC that reflects principles of not just privacy, but all values of a free society. 

SHAPE THE FUTURE OF
FINANCE WITH US

Please fill out the form for general, press, and membership inquiries, or email [email protected] to discuss how you can get involved with the Digital Dollar Project’s research and community.