“While the new cryptocurrency will fulfil the stated goal of bitcoin of being an electronic cash system, the fact it is backed by a fiat currency and released by a major financial institution means it will not be a peer-to-peer, decentralized system. People will also not be able to mine the USD Coin in the same way other cryptocurrencies can be generated, as the only way to acquire them is to buy them.”

According to a report from the Independent (UK) Goldman Sachs have produced a cryptocurrency to rival the US Dollar. Aptly named ‘USD’ the currency aims to be a faster and more secure version of the US Dollar. Check out the Independent’s full coverage of the story, here- https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/goldman-sachs-cryptocurrency-us-dollar-bitcoin-digital-usd-coin-a8355546.html Essentially, a start-up called Circle which has links to Goldman Sachs have produced a currency with direct links to the US Dollar. The purpose of this is to create a hybrid that is exposed to the best of both worlds. Essentially, USD will be a cryptocurrency that boasts the freedom of a cryptocurrency, with the safety and balance of the US FIAT currency. This in turn eliminates the problems with volatility that seem to be preventing currencies like Bitcoin achieving mainstream adoption. The addition of blockchain technology to the US Dollar, also makes USD a much more secure asset. According to the Independent:The ultimate goal for circle is to use this technology elsewhere, with the company now reportedly looking towards Europe and the Euro to analyse the possibilities of producing a FIAT/Crypto hybrid across a number of countries on the continent. This is potentially very big news, not just for cryptocurrencies but also for the United States in general. Not only could this provide new meaning and new uses for the US Dollar, as ever, this sort of integration will in turn encourage more and more people to start using cryptocurrencies. Now obviously the USD is less an investment opportunity and more a viable currency option, by marrying the best of both worlds, Circle and Goldman Sachs seem to have the opportunity to make some great changes here, changes that could in turn entirely change how the world spends money. Moreover, movement into the Euro would give 19 countries access to this technology and may even allow other European countries that do not accept the Euro currently, to start drawing upon the technology in the pursuit of creating their own hybrid currency. News of this is still premature, I think there’s going to be a lot more information coming out about this over the coming weeks. We’ll keep you updated!