Ripple Co-Founder Claims That The US Is Losing The Tech Cold War

On the 6th of October, 2020, Chris Larsen, the co-founder of Ripple, spoke out at the LA Blockchain Summit conference. There, Larsen called the US out for falling behind in the latest race for dominance: Developing the next generation of the global financial system.

Larsen Unimpressed By US’ Progress

In this address, Larsen expanded upon some of his frustrations with the US in regards to regulations. These regulations have, in turn, caused many companies to consider moving their operations to other jurisdictions.

As such, Larsen argued that the US, within this technological cold war with China, is falling behind at a woeful pace. He asserted that China’s central government has managed to outpace the US lawmakers when it comes to legislative clarity, infrastructure building, allocation of resources, and fostering of innovation. This comes in regard to blockchain technology, as well as other technologies like surveillance, big data, and artificial intelligence.

China In The Lead

In his statement, Larsen highlighted that China had recognized that the next generation of the global financial system would be controlled by these new technologies. Larsen stated that, within the next twenty years, things like SWIFT and correspondent banking would be cast aside.

Larson further stressed that the US had failed to embrace initiatives designed to digitize the USD, noting the monumental progress China has made in the development of a central bank digital currency (CBDC). Through this CBDC, Larsen noted that the Yuan could be spread globally by China, thus undermining the dominance of the USD within international markets.

DC/EP Soon To Threaten The USD

Just earlier this week, Fan Yi Fei, the Deputy Governor of the People’s Bank of China, revealed that more than $162 million in domestic transactions were already settled by the Digital Currency, Electronic Payment (DCEP) pilot program.

Larsen made it clear that the Chinese regulators have proven far more adaptable than their US counterparts, arguing that the US regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), need to recognize Blockchain. In particular, the SEC must realize that it will serve as a critical battlefield when it comes to the US-China technological arms race. Instead, the SEC is maintaining exclusionary policies aimed at stopping another ICO craze, like what happened in 2017.

It seems that the US is convinced that the world won’t keep moving until the US itself is ready to move with it. If this keeps going, the next two decades will be an interesting time, indeed. This is especially so with China ramping up its border tensions, among other acts.