The nonprofit Human Rights Foundation (HRF) has launched a central bank digital currency (CBDC) tracker, the organization announced at the same Oslo Freedom House event it hosts. The online tracker has published educational materials and an information line. It is expected to become fully operational by the end of the year.
The tracker came out of an eight-month fellowship at HRF that was announced in January. The fellowship was awarded to Cato Institute policy analyst Nick Anthony, researcher Janine Romer and podcaster Matthew Mezinskis. Cato Institute is a fiery opponent of CBDCs.
HRF chief strategy officer Alex Gladstein said in a promotional video about the tracker:
โIt will be an online resource outlining the progress of central bank digital currencies around the world, especially in authoritarian countries, and the red flags and civil liberties risks that come with it.โ
Because a CBDC is a central bank liability, it "creates a direct link between citizens and the central bank," which "opens the door for so many human rights concerns when it comes to CBDC adoption," according to the CBDC tracker on the HRF website.
The first phase of the @HRF CBDC Tracker is now available!
Just announced at the Oslo Freedom Forum, the full resource will be released later in the year.
For now, check out the landing page (phase 1) here: https://t.co/OrZ2fNfy7l pic.twitter.com/FHB9DWXDqs
โNick Anthony (@EconWithNick) June 13, 2023
The HRF is an active supporter of Bitcoin (BTC). Gladstein told Cointelegraph in the past that Bitcoin "fixes democracy" and could discourage wars.
Related: 7 central banks and the BIS continue to examine ongoing policy issues for retail CBDCs
According to the unrelated CBDC Tracker website, the vast majority of the world's central banks are in some stage of investigating CBDCs, but only three CBDCs have been thrown out until now. Those are the Sand Dollar from the Bahamas, the Jam-Dex from Jamaica and the eNaira in Nigeria. The website also lists 14 pilot projects, including China's e-CNY digital yuan. According to HRF, the digital yuan already has 300 million users.
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