ROME, July 10 — For the 1.4 billion adults the World Bank says remain unbanked as of 2021, the promise of digital currency is not about technology. It is about a bank account. A place to save.
A way to receive wages without a middleman taking a cut. Central bank digital currencies, known as CBDCs, could offer that direct access to central bank money for every citizen, bypassing commercial banks entirely.
That is the argument advocates make: that digital versions of national currencies can pull people into the financial system who have been left out for generations. The European Central Bank has stated that a digital euro would not be programmable or used for surveillance. That statement matters because the privacy question has become one of the most charged debates in this space.
If a central bank issues digital cash, critics ask, does it see every coffee you buy? The ECB says no. The Bank for International Settlements, the central bankers’ own institution, has published multiple reports on how to design CBDCs.
Privacy, security, and interoperability are the pillars they emphasize. The BIS reports do not dictate policy, but they shape the thinking of central banks now exploring digital currencies. Then there is the private side of this story.
Stablecoins like Tether, launched in 2014, and USD Coin, launched in 2018, are private digital currencies pegged to traditional fiat money. By 2025, their combined market capitalisation had exceeded $150 billion. That is not central bank money.
That is private money, issued by companies, traded on exchanges, used by millions who want the speed of crypto without the volatility. Programmable money is another layer.
CBDCs can be designed to enable targeted fiscal transfers. Think stimulus payments during a crisis, delivered instantly to digital wallets. For governments, that is efficiency.
For privacy advocates, it is a step toward control. The human side of this is not abstract.
For the unbanked, a CBDC could mean the difference between storing cash under a mattress and having a digital wallet that works with a simple mobile phone. For the families who send remittances across borders, it could mean lower fees and faster settlement. For the elderly who fear being left behind, it could mean a system designed with accessibility in mind — or one that excludes them further.
The tension is real. Financial inclusion versus financial surveillance. Programmable efficiency versus personal autonomy.
Central bank control versus private innovation. What happens next depends on design choices.
The ECB has drawn its line. The BIS has published its principles. The private stablecoin market continues to grow, with Tether and USD Coin now handling volumes that rival some smaller central banks.
For the 1.4 billion, the question is not whether digital currency arrives. It is whether the version that arrives works for them.
