Digital Currencies—More than a Passing Fad?

The financial system is currently in a period of exceptionally rapid technological and organizational change, with the adoption of cloud computing to store and process financial data, artificial intelligence to analyze it, and blockchain to secure it. It is fashionable to assert that digital currencies will be part of that future. But cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are too volatile to possess the essential attributes of money. Stablecoins have fragile currency pegs that diminish their utility in transactions. And central bank digital currencies are a solution in search of a problem.