Nine Republican senators support the bill to target China’s CBDC on sanctions

The digital Yuan or CBDC by China has always been in talks for its possible use to evade sanctions and compromise the personal data of users. Nine Republican senators have supported measures aimed at directing US government agencies’ policy around the matter.

Senators Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, with the support of seven other renowned Republican senators, presented the “Say No to the Silk Road Act” on Wednesday, which would compel select government agencies to monitor China’s central bank digital currency or CBDC. Because of China’s CBDC deployment, the two senators expressed worry about digital surveillance and privacy of nationals and foreign users.

Notably, as TheCoinRise reported, China launched its digital yuan test wallet, marking an important step towards digital yuan’s deployment.

If the law passes, the US Secretary of Commerce and Commerce Representative will inform on the impacts of the digital yuan on trade and trade enforcement actions, while the Department of State will issue a CBDC warning. The bill also mandated that the Office of Management and Budget establish guidelines for organizations using China’s CBDC, as well as that foreign government receiving military assistance reports if they were using digital yuan.

Russia might turn to China’s CBDC

“If left unchecked, technologies including China’s CBDC will empower Russia to evade global sanctions on systems such as SWIFT and enable the CCP to further surveillance and threaten their citizens,” Blackburn warned.

China’s digital currency raises red flags considering the historic willingness of the CCP to control everything. @MarshaBlackburn Say No to the Silk Road Act lays out actions take to better prepare & manage risks associated w/ the CCP blockchain & digital yuan.

— U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (@SenHydeSmith) March 9, 2022

With devastating sanctions issued by the United States and the European Union harming Russia’s economy, some sources claim the government may turn to China for help, utilizing payment systems such as UnionPay. Many lawmakers are looking into digital assets as a way for Russia to get around these prohibitions. President Joe Biden of the United States revealed on Wednesday that he had signed an executive order aimed at establishing a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency, emphasizing its potential role in circumventing sanctions.