Georgia, a candidate for EU membership, is striding into a challenging financial realm with its initiation of a pilot for a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), dubbed the digital Lari. The digital Lari venture, though touted as innovative, is a complex scenario fraught with uncertainties and potential infringements on personal freedoms.
What is CBDC?
A Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) is essentially a digital version of a country’s currency, controlled and issued by its central bank. While touted as a step towards modernization, it raises grave concerns regarding individual privacy and governmental control.
What is the NBG doing?
In short, the National Bank of Georgia (NBG) is planning to launch a CBDC pilot. The purported benefits like streamlined agricultural insurance and real estate transaction automation veil the more sinister prospects of privacy erosion.
The aspiration to integrate with the European Union and interact with a digital Euro shouldn’t come at the cost of sacrificing monetary freedom and privacy. The hasty rush towards this digital venture by the NBG, without a clear delineation of privacy safeguards, is a gamble that could have far-reaching ramifications.
Dangers of CBDC
The advent of CBDC in Georgia, heralded as the digital Lari, comes with a slew of potential threats. It opens doors for invasive surveillance, allowing governmental scrutiny of every transaction made. This not only threatens financial privacy but also poses a risk of undue control over citizens’ assets, rendering the public vulnerable to authoritative excesses.
Advocacy Alert: Stand Against Surveillance
It’s imperative that the Georgian populace, and the global community at large, take a strong stance against the potential infringements posed by CBDCs. Protesting against the digital Lari isn’t merely about resisting a digital currency, but safeguarding the sanctity of privacy and financial autonomy. The Georgian venture into CBDC should be meticulously scrutinized to ensure it doesn’t morph into a conduit for unwarranted surveillance, mirroring ominous precedents set by nations like Russia.
A few months ago, we made an episode on The Global Citizen’s podcast about CBDCs. We discuss concerns around privacy and government control. Tune in to learn more!
