Tin Foil Hats, Economic Reality and the Total Perspective Vortex

[pmbug]

Yeah. I haven't been posting much lately. Too busy "redecorating my bunker". There is higher risk for civil unrest than I'm comfortable with right now. The post election legitimacy wrangling is just starting.

 

[pmbug]

India plans to introduce a law to ban private cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and put in place a framework for an official digital currency to be issued by the central bank, according to a legislative agenda listed by the government.

The law will “create a facilitative framework for creation of the official digital currency to be issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI),” said the agenda, published on the lower house website on Friday.
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India proposes law to ban cryptocurrencies, create official digital currency

India plans to introduce a law to ban private cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and put in place a framework for an official digital currency to be issued by the central bank, according to a legislative agenda listed by the government.

www.reuters.com

 

[pmbug]

Russia’s FX holdings ...

When it comes to the balance the banks also been boosting their share of gold and simultaneously cutting its share of the US dollar in its forex holdings. ...

Russia boosts it's gold holdings

www.kitco.com

 

[pmbug]

... the IMF is planning to issue $500 billion of new SDRs, although some Democrat senators are lobbying for an issue of $2 trillion SDRs or more.

This would be almost ten times the amount of SDRs issued in 2009 and would go a long way to increasing SDR liquidity and advancing the globalist agenda of eventually having the SDR replace the U.S. dollar as the leading reserve asset.
...

The Great Reset Is Here - Daily Reckoning

Triffin’s Dilemma and the Great Reset… 2009 was just a warm up act for the IMF and SDRs…

dailyreckoning.com

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Thursday threw her support behind a new allocation of the IMF's own currency, or Special Drawing Rights, but said broad parameters were needed to boost transparency on how the reserves are used and traded.

Reversing the opposition of the Trump administration, Yellen told G20 finance officials in a letter that a new SDR allocation could boost liquidity for poor countries, which have been particularly hard hit by the global coronavirus pandemic.

The U.S. Treasury chief gave no specific size for possible allocation of SDRs, which can be converted to hard currency by IMF members. Italy, which holds the presidency of the G20 this year, and other members of the group of rich and emerging economies have backed a $500 billion allocation, but the United States had been guarded about its view until now.
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Yellen backs new allocation of IMF's SDR currency to help poor nations

 

[pmbug]

Russia must take urgent steps to cut its use of the dollar to a minimum as the new U.S. administration of Joe Biden signals it will ramp up sanctions, a top diplomat said.

“We need to barricade ourselves against the U.S. financial and economic system to eliminate dependence on this toxic source of permanent hostile actions,” Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said in an interview Wednesday in Moscow. “We need to cut back the role of the dollar in any operations.”

Russia is bracing itself for the latest U.S. punitive measures ...

Russian President Vladimir Putin has spearheaded a drive for several years to reduce exposure to U.S. assets, pushing the share of gold in central bank reserves above dollars for the first time. Still, Russia relies on the U.S. currency for much of its international trade and overseas investors hold almost a quarter of its government debt.

The Foreign Ministry isn’t responsible for economic policy and Ryabkov didn’t elaborate on what steps might be taken to further reduce Russia’s reliance on the dollar.
...

... The Biden administration has vowed to take a tougher stance on Russia and it is considering new sanctions to punish Moscow ...

Bloomberg - Are you a robot?

 

[pmbug]

From a few weeks ago:

April 14 (Xinhua) -- International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva has said she is "confident" that the IMF will distribute a new allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDR) to member countries by mid-August.

"It is a remarkable demonstration of multilateralism" that the IMF membership has agreed to support a new SDR allocation of 650 billion U.S. dollars, the largest in the history of the IMF, Georgieva said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua on Tuesday.
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Georgieva said she has committed by the end of June to make a proposal on the new SDR allocation to the IMF board of directors. Once the proposal is approved, it will be submitted to the IMF board of governors for a final vote.

"Given that we all are under pressure to act for the exit from the crisis, I am confident that sometime in summer, by mid-August, the new allocation will be distributed to our membership," she said.
...
Georgieva also said the IMF sees "clear value" of SDR as an international reserve asset ...

Update: IMF chief says "confident" to distribute new SDR by mid-August

ampcopy Provided by Xinhua The chief said the upcoming SDR allocation is significant as it will provide much-needed reserves boost to emerging markets and de

www.bignewsnetwork.com

 

[rblong2us]

$650 billion ?
sounds like loose change ..........

A decent central bank ought to be good for 6.5 trillion, just for starters (-;

 

[pmbug]

I'm sure they are just getting started with the SDR "printing".

 

[pmbug]

The share of US dollar reserves held by central banks fell to 59 percent—its lowest level in 25 years—during the fourth quarter of 2020, according to the IMF’s Currency Composition of Official Foreign Exchange Reserves (COFER) survey. Some analysts say this partly reflects the declining role of the US dollar in the global economy, in the face of competition from other currencies used by central banks for international transactions. ...
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Some expect that the US dollar’s share of global reserves will continue to fall as emerging market and developing economy central banks seek further diversification of the currency composition of their reserves. A few countries, such as Russia, have already announced their intention to do so.

Despite major structural shifts in the international monetary system over the past six decades, the US dollar remains the dominant international reserve currency. As our Chart of the Week shows, any changes to the US dollar’s status are likely to emerge in the long run.

US Dollar Share of Global Foreign Exchange Reserves Drops to 25-Year Low

By Serkan Arslanalp and Chima Simpson-Bell عربي, 中文, Español, Français, 日本語 Português, Русский The share of US dollar reserves held by central banks fell to 59 percent—its lowest level in 25 years—during the fourth quarter of 2020, according to the IMF’s Currency Composition of Official Foreign...

blogs.imf.org

The IMF published a blog post discussing the dollar's decline as the dominant reserve currency. Interesting times....

 

[pmbug]

In an interview this morning on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” legendary investor Stanley Druckenmiller gave his view on the dollar’s stance as the world reserve currency and the current U.S. fiscal and monetary policy. Druckenmiller did not hold back his views on what the massive amounts of liquidity meant for the bond market, or the U.S. and its position as the incumbent world reserve currency.

“I am comfortable with it [the dollar losing reserve currency status], that is my central case,” he said.
...
... I think it is more likely than not within 15 years we lose reserve currency status.”
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Legendary Investor Stanley Druckenmiller: USD Will Lose World Reserve Currency Status

In criticisms of Federal Reserve actions, legendary investor Stanley Druckenmiller highlighted the case for bitcoin to replace the dollar.

bitcoinmagazine.com

 

[pmbug]

The Federal Reserve published a press release today:

...
Powell announced that the Federal Reserve plans to publish this summer a discussion paper that will explore the implications of fast-evolving technology for digital payments, with a particular focus on the possibility of issuing a U.S. central bank digital currency. ...

... More technically oriented projects, focused on specific tools and infrastructure, are underway at the Board and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. The Fed is also collaborating internationally in groups such as the Bank for International Settlements' CBDC coalition.
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Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell outlines the Federal Reserve's response to technological advances driving rapid change in the global payments landscape

Technological advances are driving rapid change in the global payments landscape. The Federal Reserve is studying these developments and exploring ways that it

www.federalreserve.gov

 

[rblong2us]

As the central bank of the United States, the Federal Reserve is charged with promoting monetary and financial stability

Perhaps someone should tell them ........

If their offering is an attempt to push the alternative crypto world aside, I'm not sure they will succeed and for most, means of payment isnt a big issue.
For business and international transactions there might be some benefit though.
Of course the way to launch it and make it popular is to create a wallet for everyone and stuff it full of cryptodollars.
Inflation fixed and everyone happy

 

[pmbug]

Wheels in motion I guess...

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) came out in full support of the development of the central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), stating in its new report that their time "has come."

"It would be fair to say that CBDCs are an idea whose time has come. We can see it from various surveys conducted by the BIS," BIS head of research Hyun Song Shin said during the press conference. "If done right, CBDCs can form the backbone of a highly efficient new digital payment system by enabling broad access and providing strong data governance and private standards."

The BIS report, titled 'CBDCs: an opportunity for the monetary system,' was released on Wednesday. It marks a big step in favor of this new technology.
..
"While identification (based on a unique digital ID) is crucial for the safety of the payment system and transactions in a CBDC, there is a countervailing imperative to protect the privacy and safety of users. Beyond theft, the combination of transaction, geolocation, social media and search data raises concerns about data abuse and even personal safety. As such, protecting an individual's privacy from both commercial providers and governments has the attributes of a basic right. In this light, preventing the erosion of privacy warrants a cautious approach to digital identity," the report stated. "Identity fraud is a key concern in the digital economy. These considerations suggest that a token-based CBDC which comes with full anonymity could facilitate illegal activity, and is, therefore, unlikely to serve the public interest. Identification at some level is hence central in the design of CBDCs."

The BIS concludes that some type of an ID system is the "better way to go," Shin and Coeure said.
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BIS backs central bank digital currencies: Their time 'has come'

www.kitco.com

Are you ready to receive your mark of the beast?

 

[pmbug]

The IMF approved creation of $650B SDRs. This is the tranche first discussed back in Feb and then in May (posts 604 & 606).

IMF Governors Approve a Historic US$650 Billion SDR Allocation of Special Drawing Rights

August 2, 2021

Washington, DC: The Board of Governors of the IMF has approved a general allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) equivalent to US$650 billion (about SDR 456 billion) on August 2, 2021, to boost global liquidity. [1]

“This is a historic decision – the largest SDR allocation in the history of the IMF and a shot in the arm for the global economy at a time of unprecedented crisis. The SDR allocation will benefit all members, address the long-term global need for reserves, build confidence, and foster the resilience and stability of the global economy. It will particularly help our most vulnerable countries struggling to cope with the impact of the COVID-19 crisis,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said.

The general allocation of SDRs will become effective on August 23, 2021. The newly created SDRs will be credited to IMF member countries in proportion to their existing quotas in the Fund.
...

IMF Governors Approve a Historic US$650 Billion SDR Allocation of Special Drawing Rights

www.imf.org