Project Hamilton

Link to announcement: dci.mit.edu

Research → Proof of concept

Announcement Year: 2021 → 2020

Description: Federal Reserve and Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Digital Currency Initiative announced a joint exploration into the use of existing and new technologies to build and test a hypothetical digital currency platform. → In August 2020, the Fed published some findings of its "FooWire" trial, which was developed using the Hyperledger Fabric blockchain software. According to the central bank's researchers, that trial "highlighted the potential of DLT for certain payment uses, the quick speed with which a system could be implemented, the potential simplicity of smart contracts, and the range of functionality offered by such platforms. Additionally, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston announced it will work with researchers from MIT's Digital Currency Initiative (DCI) on a "multi-year collaboration" to build and test a "hypothetical" open-source central bank digital currency platform. In a speech announcing this project, Fed governor Lael Brainard stressed that the Fed has still yet to make a formal decision on whether to official pursue a digital currency launch.

Link to announcement: www.bostonfed.org

None → Research

Announcement Year: 2021

Retail/Wholesale: Retail

Description: Federal Reserve and Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Digital Currency Initiative announced a joint exploration into the use of existing and new technologies to build and test a hypothetical digital currency platform.

Link to announcement: www.bostonfed.org

Country / Region: United States of America

Central Bank(s): US Federal Reserve