Schnabel Sees Blockchain as Key to Central-Bank Money Modernization

European Central Bank (ECB) Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel is calling for central-bank money to be placed on blockchain technology. In a statement, she said that authorities must bring central-bank money onto the blockchain in order to revamp the way monetary policy is executed.

Schnabel believes that going on-chain would not only preserve the role of money as the foundation of settlement but also enable central banks to leverage the programmability of distributed ledgers. This, she said, would modernize monetary-policy implementation, collateral management, and liquidity provision, thereby fostering financial stability.