The People, the Ballot and the Future of Money

“CBDCs may be popular with central bankers, but ultimately money is a tool for the people. As long as the risks outweigh the benefits, it is unlikely that a CBDC will take root in Africa or elsewhere.” This was the verdict of US think tank Cato Institute following the failure of Nigeria’s central bank digital currency. Despite a nationwide referendum with 99.5% approval, the African country’s government introduced the eNaira in January 2023. With a total population of about 230 million, according to the International Monetary Fund, there are currently 13 million eNaira wallets, most of which are inactive.

In Canada, over 80% of the almost 90,000 respondents were strongly opposed to the Bank of Canada researching and developing the possibility of issuing a digital dollar. Only 12% of respondents said they “might” use a digital currency.

The Bank of England and HM Treasury, for their part, received more than 50,000 responses to their survey on the digital pound by the end of 2023. The number of private individuals involved is not known. The authorities state that there will be a further consultation before the introduction of primary legislation to give both Parliament and the public a say.

Less than 8,000 people responded to the European Central Bank’s public consultation about three years ago. The low level of interest may have been due to the fact that the questions suggested a positive outlook. It is not known how many people were against the introduction of a digital euro. No specific referendum on the digital euro is currently planned in the EU, but rather a legislative process within the EU institutions. In Japan, on the other hand, the final path to the digital yen has been mapped out. According to Uchida Shinichi, deputy director general of the Bank of Japan, neither the bank nor the financial sector can decide alone: “It will have to be a decision by the Japanese people.”

Switzerland is probably the only country in the world where the path via the ballot box is institutionally mapped out. There was already an attempt to reform money creation in 2018. The Sovereign Money Initiative called for only the Swiss National Bank to be allowed to create electronic money, which was rejected by a majority of the citizens. The Federal Council still has no plans for a digital franc for the population. Instead, it wants to raise the legal tender status of cash to constitutional level. Here, too, the people will have the last word.

Gabriel Juri
SIX