On Gold, EU Capital Controls, CBDCs, Cryptos, and Stocks | Martin Armstrong

The Gold price is driven by geopolitical uncertainty, not peace expectations, with central banks acquiring it for its neutral status against collapsing European sovereign debt. European investors buying gold while leaders escalate Russia tensions create a self-reinforcing fear cycle. This risk has prompted major European institutions to relocate gold reserves to New York and Singapore, anticipating the historical certainty of European capital controls during crises.

Gold's powerful rally is terminal, completing Wave (3) past $4,380 just as Market Vane's Bullish 

Consensus hits a historic extreme of 95, signaling an imminent, major corrective Wave (4).

Evidence of control includes the new mandatory bank account declarations—the initial phase of preventing capital flight. Further anticipated steps include regulating cryptocurrencies and implementing Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) by January 2026, likely justified by a false flag event. Existing withdrawal limits (e.g., in Spain) confirm the focus on financial control, a practice rooted in historical currency cancellations and asset restrictions during past European crises.

 Dow-Gold Ratio from 1792 to 2025:

Dow valuation relative to gold now below mid-1960s.

The Socrates model forecasts a panic cycle in 2026 with intensified conflict and Euro stress, marked by a dangerous, unprecedented convergence of the international conflict and civil unrest cycles. This systemic risk is compounded by the destabilizing effect of Europe's large, unsupported migrant population. Economically, interest rates will rise, particularly in Europe, as geopolitical risk increases debt service costs. The unsustainable US debt trajectory confirms the sovereign debt crisis will lead to government failure when debt cannot be rolled over.

Investors are now in a "private wave," prioritizing private assets over government solvency. The primary stock market bubble risk lies in AI stocks, not blue-chip indices used by institutions for large-scale capital parking. Consequently, "smart money" is relocating capital to the United States (equities and real estate). This strategic move anticipates the CBDC's ultimate function: an impenetrable barrier to capital outflows, reflective of Europe's controlling political philosophy.

Reference:
Martin Armstrong (October 20, 2025) - Insider Sources Preparing For BIG Events (video)

Charts: Robert Prechter (October 21, 2025) - History and Outlook for Gold. (video)

 

Larry Williams' outlook for gold in Q4 of 2025.

The EU planned to launch the digital euro in October 2025. Now it’s delayed to 2029, officially for “technical reasons,” 

but actually after Trump banned the Fed from issuing digital legal tender, effectively sidelining the ECB too.

See also:
David Hickson (October 20, 2025) - Hurst Cycles Update for S&P 500 and Bitcoin; Focus on Gold. 

 Martin Armstrong (August 28, 2025) - Europe's Debt Ponzi Scheme 2.0—Default or Forced Loan.

 Martin Armstrong (March 21, 2025) - Europe's Date with Destiny: Collapse by 2029 is Inevitable. 

Martin Armstrong (March 1, 2025)  - Europe Will Go to War, Lose, and Euro Will Become Extinct. 

Nikolai Kondratieff (1926) - Gold Production Mirrors the Long Wave, It Doesn’t Drive It.

Europe's Debt Ponzi Scheme 2.0—Default or Forced Loan | Martin Armstrong

During the Panic of 1893, which became a global contagion, Italy couldn't roll over its short-term debt, as it was unable to sell new bonds to pay off maturing ones. When faced with circumstances similar to what we see today, Italy did not officially default in the classic sense of failing to pay. Still, it executed a coercive debt restructuring that is widely considered a selective default or soft default in 1893–1894. This is what we refer to as a forced loan.

» We are living in a perpetual Ponzi scheme. « 

 

Italy was facing a run on its short-term debt and unable to roll over the maturing paper because there were no buyers. The Italian government, led by Prime Minister Francesco Crispi, did not formally declare a default. Instead, it passed a law (Legge 11 luglio 1894, n. 386) that forcibly converted the short-term Buoni del Tesoro into a new long-term bond. The law mandated that holders of the short-term Treasury notes could not be repaid in cash upon maturity. Instead, they were forced to exchange their maturing short-term paper for a new long-term government bond, called the “Rendita Italiana 5%” (5% Italian Annuity).

Where inmates run the asylum, insanity rules.

This new bond had a 5% coupon but was issued at a price below par (effectively giving a higher yield to compensate, somewhat, for the forced nature of the deal. Crucially, it was a perpetual bond, meaning it had no final maturity date.

The Italian government unilaterally changed the terms of its debt. Investors lent money for 30 days, expecting to be repaid in cash at the end of that term. The government broke that promise. Investors had no choice. They could not get their cash back; their only option was to accept the new long-term instrument. While they received a new security, it was illiquid (perpetual), and its value was uncertain. This action caused significant financial losses for many Italian banks and citizens who held the paper.

I would expect that Europe will do this when it can no longer issue new debt to pay off its old debt. We are living in a perpetual Ponzi scheme. There is only one way this ends, and that is a default or a forced loan. 
 

Reference:
Martin Armstrong (August 28, 2025)  - What Happens When Governments Cannot Sell Their Debt?

 

» Europe needs war as a distraction, and stablecoins are, in fact, war bonds. « 

 Martin Armstrong, August 28, 2025.

 

See also:

Martin Armstrong (July 17, 2025) - Trump’s GENIUS Act Sets the Stage for US CBDC.

 Martin Armstrong (March 21, 2025) - Europe's Date with Destiny: Collapse by 2029 is Inevitable.

Martin Armstrong (March 1, 2025) - Europe Will Go to War around May 15, Lose, and Euro Will Become Extinct.

TPR (March 11, 2025) - The ECB's Dystopian Digital Euro Dictatorship Set to Launch in October 2025.  

Trump’s GENIUS Act Sets the Stage for US CBDC | Martin Armstrong

While the world was distracted by the Epstein debacle, legislators introduced the GENUIS Act that would permit the US government to regulate stablecoins. The GENUIS (Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act), primarily sponsored by Senator Bill Hagerty (R-Tennessee), permits the government to oversee, regulate, and define the $250 billion stablecoin market.

Now, stablecoins differ from cryptocurrencies as they are pegged to a stable asset such as a fiat currency or commodity. Cryptocurrencies are allegedly allowed to freely operate on the market based on supply and demand. The GENIUS Act will peg stablecoins to the US dollar and require issuers to maintain a 1:1 reserve ratio in short-term treasuries or cash.

» I just voted NO on the Rule for the GENIUS Act because it does not include a ban on Central Bank Digital Currency and because Speaker Johnson did not allow us to submit amendments to the GENIUS Act. Americans do not want a government-controlled

Central Bank Digital Currency. «
Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, July 15, 2024.

 

Issuers holding over $10 billion in outstanding stablecoins will be subject to federal regulation under a newly created oversight agency. These issuers will now be deemed financial institutions and required to meet the traditional banking regulations as well. Stablecoins can no longer pay interest or act as an alternative to bonds. Perhaps most notably, issuers must not meet anti-money-laundering (AML) regulations, which are set to provide the government with unlimited access to payments.
 

So essentially, the government is turning the stablecoin into a digital dollar of sorts. The concern here is that this could delve into digitizing all currency and creating a CBDC. The act specifically provides the government with the authority to “block, freeze, and reject specific or impermissible transactions.” “A permitted payment stablecoin issuer shall be treated as a financial institution [and]…shall be subject to all Federal laws applicable to a financial institution located in the United States including…policies and procedures to block, freeze, and reject specific or impermissible transactions that violate Federal or State laws, rules, or regulations…”

» In 1971, we left the gold standard. Today, the groundwork is being laid for a cashless society controlled by digital currency.

You won’t control your money. The government will. This would end freedom altogether. «
Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, July 17, 2024.

 

This provision is not intended to protect the world against drug smugglers and thieves. This provision is intended to grant government unlimited control over how people spend stablecoins. The government could have easily frozen the accounts of those who refused the COVID-19 vaccination, for example, and the Biden Administration admittedly weaponized existing financial institutions to spy on Conservative Americans through their payment histories.

 

“Stablecoins are the bait and switch for direct-issued government CBDCs,” Bitcoin Magazine editor Mark Goodwin said, “Stablecoins can be programmed. Exactly like how we fear CBDCs will be programmed. They’re exactly the same tokenized mechanism… They can be taken out of your wallet. Your wallet can be blacklisted. A lot of the things that we fear about CBDCs are totally available within the tool set of Stablecoins.”

 

The GENIUS Act has received bipartisan support. Although Republican Hagerty championed the bill, he had bipartisan co-sponsors, including Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Tim Scott (R-SC), and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY).

 

I warned that governments would NEVER allow any cryptocurrency or stablecoin to compete with their own currency. I long warned that government was merely tolerating these alternative currencies in the past as they posed no real threat. But now the government needs the ability to tax everything to support its perpetual spending. Every digital transaction is traceable. Every digital currency is controllable—the ultimate power grab.

 

One of Donald Trump’s main campaign promises was the prevention of CBDC. The headlines are enraged over his failure to release the Epstein files, but the GENUIS Act is a far deeper betrayal of the American people that has the ability to usher in a new monetary system.

 

Quoted from:
Martin Armstrong (July 17, 2025)  - While the World Was Distracted by Epstein. 

 

See also: 

 Ellen Brown (July 30, 2025)  - The GENIUS Act and the National Bank Acts of 1863-64: Taking a Cue from Lincoln.

! Martin Armstrong (July 21, 2025)  - CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act and the CLARITY Act. !

Martin Armstrong (July 21, 2025)  - The GENIUS Act & Stable Coins – A Repeat of 1863? Debt Crisis?

 

了解你的敌人
Know your Enemies. 

The ECB's Dystopian Digital Euro Dictatorship Set to Launch in October 2025

The European Central Bank (ECB), under Christine Lagarde, is pushing for a digital euro at full speed: “The deadline for us will be October 2025, and we are preparing for this date,” Lagarde explained. The implementation depends on the approval of the Commission, the Council, and Parliament must complete the legislative process.

 Lagarde giving green light to the digital euro:

Every payment tracked in real time, with the ECB able to block payments, deduct taxes,
prevent withdrawals (no bank run), impose expiration dates on money, and enable censorship.

The digital euro is to come in two versions: a retail version for citizens and a wholesale version for financial institutions. What central bankers praise as innovation could turn out to be a Trojan horse for civil liberties. Despite the ECB’s assurances of “high privacy standards,” the fundamental fact remains: a digital central bank currency creates the technical prerequisites for seamless financial transparency.

Unlike cash, every transaction with the digital euro leaves a data trail. The assurance that the ECB will not track transactions is not convincing, given the increasing trends of state surveillance. Technically, it would be possible at any time to lift this self-imposed restriction – for example, in the name of "counterterrorism" or "tax justice."

Lena Petrova (February 9, 2025) -  EU 'Accelerates' Digital Euro Launch:
Revealed Date of Programmable Digital Currency Roll Out. 

 

Especially concerning is the possibility of freezing or confiscating balances at the push of a button. What is currently dismissed as a theoretical scenario could become bitter reality tomorrow. The experiences with account freezes of politically unpopular individuals and media in Western democracies show that this danger is by no means unfounded. A digital euro would dramatically increase this concentration of power. Imagine: A government critic suddenly finds their digital balance frozen – without a court order, without legal recourse, and without a cash alternative.

The "programmability" of the digital euro, hailed as an advantage by its supporters, reveals its true threat: The state could determine what you are allowed to spend your money on (for example, linked to a CO2 budget). Spending limits for certain products, time restrictions, or intended purposes could be directly programmed into the currency. This control could also be abused to enforce political goals. Climate policy through limiting meat purchases or air travel? Health policy by limiting "unhealthy" foods? The technical possibilities would be nearly unlimited.

 » A digital euro would be a digital form of cash. «
This is a blunt lie and exactly what the digital euro is not.

While the ECB presents the digital euro as a necessary response to China’s digital yuan and US stablecoins, it conceals the true essence of this race: It is about control, not innovation. China's CBDC project already shows how digital currencies can be used for social control. The ECB's Ethereum blockchain tests may be technically impressive but divert attention from the fundamental shift in power that a digital euro would represent: away from the citizen, towards the state and its institutions.

 » The key difference with the CBDC is that central banks will have absolute control on the rules and regulations that will determine the use of that expression of central bank liability. And also we will have the technology to enforce that. Those two issues are extremely important and that makes a huge difference with respect to what cash is. «
Agustín Carstens, General Manager, Bank for International Settlements.

The digital euro is not a neutral means of payment but a tool for undermining civil liberties. The promised benefits – faster transactions, offline functionality, competitiveness – do not outweigh the risks. While Lagarde and the ECB are pushing forward with technical preparations, citizens and parliamentarians should ask the fundamental question: Do we want a society where every financial transaction can potentially be monitored, controlled, and sanctioned? The answer to this question will have consequences far beyond 2025 or 2028.

 

See also:

Martin Armstrong (March 3, 2025) - Europe Will Go to War around May 15, Lose, and Euro Will Become Extinct.
TPR (March 2, 2025) - Quantum Computing: Paving the Way for the Tech Oligarchy's Totalitarianism. 

Marc Friedrich (June 23, 2024) - Der Digitale Euro: Die Versklavung der Gesellschaft! (video)

 

了解你的敌人
Know your Enemies.

Outlook for 2025: Depression, Debt, Default & Destruction | Martin Armstrong

The year 2025 marks a critical turning point, with a global economic crisis on the horizon. Our computer models predict a major downturn, particularly in Europe, and a prolonged US recession extending into 2028. This crisis stems from long-term mismanagement by central banks, especially the Federal Reserve, which kept interest rates too low for too long, forcing banks to hold risky government debt. While analysts focus on short-term rates, the Fed has little control over long-term rates, which continue to rise despite rate cuts. Tensions in Europe, including the threat of World War III, are exacerbating this issue and pushing rates even higher.

» While financial elites are aware of the looming collapse, everyday people will feel its full force. «

The rise in long-term rates reflects a loss of confidence in government debt. For instance, corporate bonds in France are now offering better returns than government bonds, and even Greece's debt is becoming more attractive. This points to systemic weaknesses within European governments. Meanwhile, the US faces its own dilemma: raising rates to combat inflation only makes its national debt more expensive. As the world's largest borrower, higher rates simply add to the debt burden rather than reducing spending. This crisis underscores the failure of Keynesian economics, which Paul Volcker acknowledged in 1979. Today, the US government borrows far more than in the past, and raising interest rates does little to curb spending—it only adds to the debt.

The financial system is now in deep trouble, and the average person will bear the consequences. Europe is headed for a depression, and the US is facing a severe recession. Unemployment will rise, wages will shrink, and basic goods will become more expensive. The gap between the rich and poor will widen, and financial instability will increase. A sovereign debt default in Europe by 2025 is likely to trigger a broader collapse, with massive financial instability by 2026-2027. Many banks and pension funds are heavily invested in government debt, and a default could lead to the disintegration of European financial systems. Insiders are very much aware of the crisis and fear that public panic could worsen the situation, potentially triggering bank runs. While not all banks are equally at risk, poor management and political interference in banking have worsened the problem. The Federal Reserve, designed to act as a backstop for failing banks, may be overwhelmed by the scale of the crisis.

 

The impact on ordinary Americans will be severe, with rising unemployment, shrinking wages, and higher living costs. While financial elites are aware of the looming collapse, everyday people will feel its full force. The US government’s failure to roll over its debt could spark a chain reaction, causing widespread bank failures. The interconnectedness of the banking system means one collapse could trigger a broader financial breakdown. Cash will become essential, as digital transactions and credit systems may fail, as seen in previous disruptions like the Canadian trucker protests.

I strongly recommend preparing for this crisis by having physical cash and at least two years' worth of food stored. The collapse of the financial system will lead to widespread losses in banks and pension funds, and the government and central banks will be unable to protect everyone. Those who are unprepared will suffer the most.

 November 2024: A Norwegian task force has advised against the immediate adoption of a central 

bank digital currency, while South Korea has launched a CBDC pilot with seven major banks.

As the debt crisis worsens, geopolitical instability will exacerbate inflation and push capital into the US as a safe haven. The dollar will strengthen, and sectors like gold, food, and bonds will see increased investment. However, emerging markets with high foreign-denominated debt, such as Brazil, will be particularly vulnerable to financial crises.

I also caution against the growing threat of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), which would grant governments unprecedented control over personal finances. The rise of gold as a long-term safe haven, coupled with rising long-term interest rates, will create significant risks for those holding variable-rate debt. People should prepare by securing tangible assets like cash, food, and gold, and locking in fixed-rate debt where possible. The coming crisis is inevitable, and those who prepare will have the best chance of weathering the storm.

Reference:
Martin Armstrong (December 21, 2024) - Depression, Debt, Default & Destruction in 2025. (video)

 

See also:

TPR (December 10, 2024) - 2025 in J.M. Funk’s '56-Year Cycle of Prosperity and Depression'.

Lu QiYuan (December 8, 2024) - Scott Bessent's Covert MAGA Strategy for Trump 2.0.  

 Martin Armstrong (June 21, 2024) - Final Days of the Empire. (video)

L. David Linsky (2023) - War and or Revolution in 2026. The 84 Year War Cycle.

Bojan S. Dimitrijević et al. (2016) - Sunspots and Stock Markets: Evidence of their Interdependence in Transition Countries.

Mikhail Gorbanev (2012) - Sunspots, Unemployment, and Recessions: Can the Solar Activity Cycle shape the Business Cycle?

The Financial System Has Reached The End | Egon von Greyerz

The world is now witnessing the end of a currency and financial system which the Chinese already forecasted in 1971 after Nixon closed the gold window [...] History tells us that we have now reached the point of no return. So denying history at this point will not just be very costly but will lead to a total destruction of investors’ wealth. 

 

History never lies but politicians do without fail. In a fake system based on false values, lying is considered to be an essential part of political survival. Let’s just look at Nixon's ignorant and irresponsible statements of August 15, 1971 when he took away the gold backing of the dollar and thus all currencies. Later on we will show how clear-sighted the Chinese leaders were about the destiny of the US and its economy. So there we have tricky Dick’s lies:

• The suspension of the convertibility of the dollar in 1971 is still in effect 52 years later.
• As the dollar has declined by almost 99% since 1971, the “strength of the economy” is also declining fast although using fiat money as the measure hides the truth.

And now to the last lie: “Your dollar will be worth just as much tomorrow”. Yes, you are almost right Dick!  It is still worth today a whole 1% of the value when you closed the gold window. The political system is clearly a farce. You have to lie to be elected and you have to lie to stay in power. That is what the gullible voters expect. The sad result is that they will always be cheated. So in 1971 after Nixon closed the gold window, China in its official news media the People’s Daily made the statements below: 

 

Clearly the Chinese understood the consequences of the disastrous US decision which would destroy the Western currency system as they said:

• Seriousness of the US economic crisis and decay and decline of the capitalist system.
• Mark the collapse of the monetary system with the US dollar as its prop.
• Nixon’s policy cannot extricate the US from financial and economic crisis.

I am quite certain that the US administration at the time ridiculed China’s official statement. As most Western governments, they showed their arrogance and complete ignorance of history. How right the Chinese were. But the road to perdition is not immediate and we have seen over 50 years the clear “decline of the capitalist system”. The end of the current system is unlikely to be far away. Interestingly it seems that a Communist non-democratic system is much more clairvoyant than a so called Western democracy. There is clearly an advantage not always having to buy votes. 

 

As the whole currency system is about to implode,  it is in my view totally irrelevant where the US dollar is heading short term measured against other fiat currencies. The dilemma is that most “experts” use the Dollar Index (DXY) as the measure of the dollar’s strength or weakness. This is like climbing the ladder of success only to find out that the ladder is leaning against the wrong building. To measure the dollar against its partners in crime (the other fiat currencies) misses the point as they are all on the way to perdition. So the dollar index measures the dollar against six fiat currencies: Euro, Pound, Yen, Canadian Dollar, Swedish Kroner and Swiss Franc. The Chinese Yuan shines in its absence even though China is the second biggest economy in the world. But here is the crux. The dollar is in a race to the bottom with 6 other currencies. Since Nixon closed the gold window in 1971 all 7 currencies, including the US dollar, have declined 97-99% in real terms. Real terms means constant purchasing power. And the only money which has maintained constant purchasing power for over 5,000 years is of course gold. So let’s make it clear – the only money which has survived in history is GOLD!

All other currencies have without fail gone to ZERO and that without exception. Voltaire said it already in 1729: "Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value – zero." And that has been the destiny of every currency throughout history. Every single currency has without fail gone to ZERO. And this is where the dollar and its lackeys are heading. To debate if a currency, which has fallen 98.2% in the last 52 years, is going to strengthen or weaken in the next year or two is really missing the point. It is virtually 100% certain that the dollar and all fiat money will complete the cycle (which started in 1913 with the creation of the Fed) and fall the remaining 1-3% to ZERO. But we must remember that the final fall involves a 100% loss of value from today.

 

 

[...] The world’s reserve currency has had a sad performance based on lies, poor real growth, all due to a mismanaged economy based on debt and printed money. So although most currencies have lost 97-99% in real terms since 1971 there are shining exceptions. When the gold window was closed in 1971 I was working in a Swiss bank in Geneva. At the time, one dollar cost Swiss Franc 4.30. Today, 52 years later, one dollar costs Swiss Franc 0.88! This means that the dollar has declined 80% against the Swiss Franc since 1971. 

 

So a country like Switzerland with virtually no deficits and a very low debt to GDP proves that a well managed economy with very low inflation doesn’t destroy its currency like most irresponsible governments. The Swiss system of direct democracy and people power is totally unique and gives the people the right to have a referendum on almost any issue they choose. This makes the people much more responsible in their choices as a winning vote on any issue becomes part of the constitution and cannot be changed by government or parliament. Only a new referendum can change such a decision. Swiss Debt to GDP is around 40%. This was the level of US debt back in 1971 before the gold window was closed. [...] US debt to GDP is now 132%. In 2000 it was 55%. 132% debt to GDP is the level of a Banana Republic which is frantically trying to survive by printing and borrowing ever increasing amounts of worthless fiat money.

  

Quoted from:
Egon von Greyerz (Nov 27, 2023) - The Financial System Has Reached The End.

 

 Agustín Carstens, general manager of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) — the central bank of central banks in Basel, Switzerland — admits that Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) will grant central bankers » absolute control « over how it can be used, and the technology to be able to centrally enforce that. Not 'up to date' with your injections? Exceeded your weekly carbon allowance? Ventured outside of your designated '15 minute' district? Oops, no money for you!  

 

» Digital ID and CBDC is the essence of scientific dictatorship «, says Patrick Wood, author of the 2014 book 'Technocracy Rising: 

The Trojan Horse of Global Transformation'. He breaks down the all-encompassing digital open-air prison

that CBDC and digital ID are designed to facilitate.

 

Joe Rogan, host of the world's most popular podcast, is now wide awake to the grave dangers posed to freedoms by CBDC, and the social credit systems that it facilitates. » If you get a bad social credit score because you tweeted something they didn't like, now you can't buy a plane ticket, now you can't buy a car, now you can't get a loan. «

See also:

Bank for International Settlements (2023) - BIS Innovation Hub work on central bank digital currency (CBDC).

International Monetary Fund (Nov 20, 2023) - Central Bank Digital Currency Development Enters the Next Phase.

Atlantic Council (Mar 21, 2023) - Snapshot: Which countries have made the most progress on CBDCs so far in 2023.

Imran N. Hosein (2021) - The Bretton Woods International Monetary System.

Carroll Quigley (1963) - The BIS — The Apex Of The System.

Carl Schmitt (1932) - Legality and Legitimacy.

Legality and Legitimacy | Carl Schmitt

Carl Schmitt ranks among the most original and controversial political thinkers of the twentieth century. His incisive criticisms of Enlightenment political thought and liberal political practice remain as shocking and significant today as when they first appeared in Weimar Germany.

 

 » The emptiness of mere majority calculus deprives legality of all persuasive power. «

 

Legality and Legitimacy was composed in 1932, in the midst of the crisis that would lead to the collapse of the Weimar Republic and only a matter of months before Schmitt’s collaboration with the Nazis. Schmitt questions the political viability of liberal constitutionalism, parliamentary government, and the rule of law. Liberal governments, he argues, cannot respond effectively to challenges by radical groups like the Nazis or Communists. Only a presidential regime subject to few, if any, can ensure domestic security in a highly pluralistic society.

Quoted from the introduction to the 2004 first English translation of

Carl Schmitt (1932) - Legality and Legitimacy.

 

November 24, 2023 - In the People's Republic of China, Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) is linked to citizens' mandatory digital ID. If somebody drives over the speed limit, the speed camera system automatically deducts a fine from their digital wallet.

 

November 24, 2023, President of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, announced the launch of the European Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), the digital euro. This currency will enable unelected technocrats at the ECB to program how, when, where, on what, and by whom it can be spent, including the imposition of social credit, carbon allowance, and vaccine passport systems. Despite the claim that "cash is here to stay," it's certain that technocrats like Lagarde intend to gradually phase out cash entirely, forcing people to use CBDCs. European Union citizens already face imprisonment or fines for cash transactions above €1,000, but the digital euro's introduction will facilitate financial totalitarianism on a scale that would make even George Orwell wince.

  

November 24, 2023, Christine Anderson, German Member of the European Parliament, explains how CBDCs, in conjunction with digital ID, will be used to exert absolute control over the population: » If you don't comply, they will just shut down your bank account. And it's not like it hasn't happened before. Look to Canada ... There were people standing up for their freedom, for their right not to get some unknown substance injected into their arms. They shut down their bank accounts. So if there was no cash, what are you going to do? They can just eliminate you with a flip of a switch. It's as simple as that. «