The Federal Reserve Bank of the United States has announced that it is launching an instant payment transfer service called “FedNow Service,” which has features of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and some analysts believe is the first big step towards a “digital dollar.”
On Wednesday, within hours of our reporting that the Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank failures could spur renewed calls for the U.S. to implement a CBDC, the Federal Reserve announced that the U.S. is rolling out the FedNow instant payment transfer service in July.
“The Federal Reserve announced that the FedNow Service will start operating in July and provided details on preparations for launch,” the announcement read.
“We couldn’t be more excited about the forthcoming FedNow launch, which will enable every participating financial institution, the smallest to the largest and from all corners of the country, to offer a modern instant payment solution,” said Ken Montgomery, first vice president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and FedNow program executive. “With the launch drawing near, we urge financial institutions and their industry partners to move full steam ahead with preparations to join the FedNow Service.”
The Fed added that the FedNow Service “will launch with a robust set of core clearing and settlement functionality and value-added features. More features and enhancements will be added in future releases to continue supporting safety, resiliency and innovation in the industry as the FedNow network expands in the coming years.”
“With the FedNow Service, the Federal Reserve is creating a leading-edge payments system that is resilient, adaptive, and accessible,” said Tom Barkin, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond and FedNow Program executive sponsor. “The launch reflects an important milestone in the journey to help financial institutions serve customer needs for instant payments to better support nearly every aspect of our economy.”
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