Book Title: FA Mann: The Lawyer and His Legacy

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Abstract: The chapter analyses the characteristics of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in comparison with other forms of money. It displays the objectives and potential risks of CBDC in general terms before discussing their benefits for different types of financial markets. The focus is on the benefits CBDC could mean for the public by providing a safe base of value option. It argues that the introduction of CBDC would bring the monetary options more closely in line with Mann’s concept that strongly favoured the state theory of money and that was sceptical about the concept (and dominance) of commercial bank money.