Srinivasan Balaji: Government Controlled Money, Alternative Bitcoin

JAKARTA - Former Coinbase Technology Chief, Balaji Srinivasan, warned Americans to be aware of the Federal Reserve's plan to launch its new digital payment and completion service, FedNow, in July.

Srinivasan argues that FedNow can give the government greater control over public finances. According to Srinivasan, Bitcoin (BTC) can be an alternative for people who want to escape government control.

"This will really be one of two things. First, there will be a mess of printing (money) and a bank run in the next few weeks, because the depositors are worried about checking their funds, and at the most important point is whether they transfer them to big banks or turn them into Bitcoin. And this really determines whether freedom will exist, even though it sounds funny, "said Balaji Srinivasan.

If everyone sends money to major banks, and small banks and tech banks shut down, then the launched CBDC can make all the money stuck in large and difficult banks to issue without government approval.

FedNow services aim to allow businesses and individuals to send and receive instant payments at any time. However, the Federal Reserve did not state that it would use CBDC to process payments.

Currently, the Biden administration is considering using CBDC to issue digital dollars. Srinivasan warns that people need to consider risks and benefits from using CBDC. Bitcoin can be an alternative for people who want to keep their financial freedom from government control.