FED Survey Shows Crypto Is Not a Priority for Most Private Banks

On July 15, the Central Bank of the United States shared the results of a “Senior Financial Officer Survey (SFOS)” survey conducted in May to gather views systematically from many banks on their interests and expectations in cryptocurrency-related financial services.

The results show that more than 66% of the corporate financial officers participating in the study agreed that implementing Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) or crypto-related products was not a priority to achieve more significant economic growth and development. These views represent the short term. 

When asked about the expected impact of DLT or crypto-related products on their bank’s liquidity management practices in the long term, respondents generally reported that they do not see these technologies as having significant effects on liquidity management. Nonetheless, respondents noted that their banks are “actively monitoring the situa­tion and will adapt to the landscape as needed.”

For a quarter of respondents, the blockchain and other distributed ledger technologies were considered a medium to high priority when asked about strategies to improve their infrastructure.

In conclusion, not that banks are turning a blind eye to cryptocurrencies but are being cautious, especially in this time of regulatory and economic uncertainty.

In related news, Jerome Powell, the chairman of the Federal Reserve of the United States, said during a conference that the FED is considering launching a CBDC to be on par with the growth of the crypto ecosystem. In his words:

“In light of the tremendous growth in crypto-assets and stablecoins, the Federal Reserve is examining whether a US central bank digital currency (CBDC) would improve on an already safe and efficient domestic payments system.”