Reed Luhtanen, Executive Director, FPC
With the unofficial kickoff of the summer behind us, I am sure many of you are looking forward to warmer temperatures, longer daylight, and turning those vacation vibes on. But I also know that while we all enjoy that summer experience, faster payments do not wait, and our efforts as a community will continue.
Case in point, we recently released two new Work Group deliverables. In early May, we issued the Directory Models Work Group’s latest guide: Decision Points for an Open Alias Directory. The guide presents critical considerations for the development of an open, alias-based directory service that could simplify and accelerate faster payments in the United States. Specifically, it discusses the following: what is open; what is an alias; how ownership of an alias could be established and managed; and how an open directory capability could be structured. With the discussion of these considerations, the report outlines crucial decisional elements when evaluating the considerations, as well as potential operational approaches. Through the guide, the FPC and Directory Models Work Group hope to further the dialogue around directories to help identify the ideal design, delivery, and operation of an open alias directory to support faster payments ubiquity.
Additionally in late April, the Digital Assets Work Group released its latest blog, Digital Assets and Stablecoin Regulation: U.S. Faster Payments are Shaping the Future. With the maturing digital assets market, now exceeding $3 trillion, and the shifting regulatory environment around digital assets, the significance of this digital currency cannot be understated. Given the current status, the blog provides a brief overview of the digital assets ecosystem, highlighting the different types that are dominating the market; adoption trends; the current regulatory framework; and potential regulatory developments that are laying the groundwork for a pro-digital assets environment. What the blog demonstrates is that evolving regulations and adoption momentum position digital assets and related technologies as key components to the future of the U.S. faster payments system.
And to support the momentum around digital assets, on Wednesday, June 25 from 1:00 to 2:00 pm ET, the FPC will hold, Understanding Stablecoins: A Beginner’s Guide. The Webinar, led by Barbara Hudgins, Director, Payments Education at ePayResources, the sponsor of the webinar, and Chris Colson, Payments Expert at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, will provide a lesson around what stablecoins are, outline their different types, and explore how they are used for payments, trading, etc. Mark you calendars now and make sure you register soon.
So, while it may be approaching summertime, we are not taking our foot off the gas. The momentum is strong, and together we will continue the work toward ubiquitous faster payments in the United States.