A FINANCIAL TIMES ECONOMICS BOOK OF THE YEAR

‘An excellent book’ VINCE CABLE | ‘A must read’ JO JOHNSON | ‘A fascinating read’ BILL DUDLEY

A timely manifesto on how digital currencies will win the New Cold War and the struggle for geopolitical supremacy in the twenty-first century.

A New Cold War is underway. While the first Cold War was characterized by the threat of nuclear conflict, the new front is economic and financial, but still driven by technology. Those who control its future will influence the outcome of the geopolitical struggle between China and the US.

Since the end of the Second World War, the US dollar has been the global reserve currency, ensuring American dominance in the world economy. But this is changing. Over a hundred countries are developing Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), digital versions of cash that will fundamentally change how we do business both domestically and internationally.

China was the first country to recognize the potential of this new form of money. Western media focused on the role of the digital yuan in China’s surveillance state, raising widespread concerns about CBDCs overall. However, they largely overlooked a more critical aspect: as a tool to ‘de-dollarize’ the developing world at the speed of light. When China’s President Xi Jinping officially launched the digital yuan in February 2022, he also signed a pact of ‘limitless cooperation’ with Russia. Within days, Russia initiated its war on Ukraine, confident it could bypass US sanctions.

Urgent, clear-sighted, and groundbreaking, Smart Money demonstrates how CBDCs will impact all our futures in ways most of us have yet to even consider. If the West is to compete, it must act quickly to develop its own global digital currencies that embody the values of liberal democracies.

Pages: 384, Year of Publication: 0930, Dimensions: 13.4x13.4cm