Central Bank Digital Currency

According to the Central Bank of Ireland "A digital euro would be a central bank liability (similar to physical euro banknotes and coins), except offered in digital form. It would be a fast, secure and easy to use instrument, which would be available for use by European citizens and businesses for the everyday payments. A digital euro would ensure that citizens of the euro area would continue to have access to widely accepted, safe and trusted means of payment for the digital age."

 CBDCs are divided into two types. These are wholesale and retail. Financial institutions are the primary users of wholesale CBDCs. Retail CBDCs are similar to physical forms of cash.

At the moment I can have a monetary transaction concluded with the exchange of cash that is private between myself and the person I am transacting with. This will end when cash is phased out, no transaction will be unrecorded. I believe surveillance leads to the government tramping on individual rights so I am against Digital Currency and Digital ID's especially when they are linked like China has done.

In 2018 in China, the eastern city of Suqian announced a plan to score the “trustworthiness” of every adult resident. Everyone would start with 1,000 points. They could get more for performing good deeds, such as voluntary work, giving blood, donating bone-marrow or being a model worker. Points would be deducted for bad behavior such as defaulting on loans, late payment of utility bills, breaking the rules of the road or being convicted of a crime. Scores would be recalculated monthly and allow residents to be sorted into eight categories, from AAA (model citizen) to D (untrustworthy).

Model citizens get incentives and untrustworthy ones have their liberties like travel removed, its a great way to keep your population under control making sure they tow the party line. 

If you think this wont happen in a democracy it is happening already, take the Canadian freedom truckers case that freezed hundreds of bank accounts associated with protest organizers and Canadians who had blockaded Ottawa’s streets with their vehicles. 

The social credit system is already here in Europe here we are well accustomed to credit checks: data brokers such as Experian trace the timely manner in which we pay our debts, giving us a score that's used by lenders and mortgage providers. We also have social-style scores, and anyone who has shopped online with eBay has a rating on shipping times and communication, while Uber drivers and passengers both rate each other; if your score falls too far, you're out of luck.

Imagine a World where you cant buy anything without having permission, where every daily choice you make is monitored and logged into a database watched over by Government.