“No-one has put as much thought into understanding and explaining the exceedingly complex world that all these parallel economic, political and technological developments are creating for us than David Birch.” — Michael Casey (author of The Age of Cryptocurrency)

“Dave is right on the money, outlining the technological and geopolitical trends that shape future digital currencies. A timely analysis which urges us all to design our own smart and anonymous currencies before other nations or big tech players force us into using theirs.” — Simon Lelieveldt (formerly with Dutch Central Bank and Dutch Bankers Association)

“No one knows more about digital money than Dave Birch, and his insights into where the world of digital currency sovereignty is going, will shock you. Our lives are about to change, radically.” — Jeffrey Robinson (expert on international financial crime and author of the worldwide bestseller The Laundrymen)

“How profound will the digital money revolution be? David Birch has written an insightful and provocative guide to the high stakes involved.” — Huw van Steenis (former Senior Advisor to Governor Mark Carney on the Future of Finance)

★A pioneering work by David G.W. Birch, an internationally recognised thought leader in digital identity and digital money. He's called 'one of the world’s leading experts on digital money'.
★A special volume in Perspectives series, edited by Diane Coyle, a prestige economist and a former advisor to the UK Treasury and professor of economics at the University of Manchester.
★Foreword by Michael J. Casey, the author, speaker and consultant on Blockchain technology, cryptocurrencies, the decentralized digital economy, author of the internationally bestseller The Age of Cryptocurrency.
★ Sold for Chinese Simplified Rights.

Money is changing and this may mean a new world order. David Birch sets out the economic and technological imperatives concerning digital money, and discusses its potential impact. Tensions will inevitably arise: between old and new, between public and private, and, most importantly, between East and West. This book contributes to the debate that we must have to shape the International Monetary and Financial System of the near future.
The way that money works now is a blip. It’s a temporary institutional arrangement agreed in response to specific political, technological and economic circumstances. As these circumstances change, so money must change. Many people think that it will undergo pretty significant change in the very near future and we need to start planning for the coming era of digital currency. Competing for this new currency dominance could mean a new cold war in cyberspace with, for example, Facebook’s private currency facing off against China’s public currency facing off against a digital euro. Or would a digital dollar win this new space race?

David G. W. Birch
David G. W. Birch is an author, advisor and commentator on digital financial services. He is a director of Consult Hyperion, an IT management consultancy that specializes in electronic transactions.
He was found by PR Daily to be one of the top ten Twitter accounts followed by innovators (along with Bill Gates and Richard Branson). Described by The Telegraph as ‘one of the world’s leading experts on digital money’, by The Independent as a ‘grade-A geek’, by the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation as ‘one of the most user-friendly of the UK’s uber-techies’ and by Financial World as ‘mad’, and has been named by WIRED magazine as one of their global top 15 favourite sources of business and finance information.
Dave is a member of the editorial board of the E-Finance & Payments Law and Policy Journal, a columnist for SPEED and well known for his blogs on digital money and digital identity. He is a media commentator on electronic business issues (having appeared on BBC television and radio, Sky and other channels around the world). He's a Technology Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation (the London-based think tank) and a Visiting Professor at the University of Surrey Business School.

Preface
foreword
Introduction

The first part of digital currency
Chapter 1 What is a digital currency?
Chapter 2 Using Technology as a Catalyst
Chapter 3 Everyone Can Profit

Part Two Drive Change
Chapter 4 What problem will digital currency solve?
Chapter 5 Rethinking Money
Chapter 6 "Laws" for the creation of digital currencies

Part Three Currency Chill
Chapter 7 Private Digital Currency
Chapter 8 Public Digital Currency
Chapter 9 Red vs Blue
Ending call to action

Glossary
Bibliography
Index