San Francisco’s Federal Reserve Bank is seeking a crypto architect for a central bank digital currency (CBDC) project, reveals an Indeed job posting. According to the role description, the employee will work on CBDC research and development.
The position is full-time and hybrid, with an annual salary starting at $134,900, requiring candidates to have “knowledge of distributed systems implementation, cryptographic protocols such as hashing, public-private keypairs and signing, consensus algorithms, and security.”
“Given the dollar’s significant role, the FRS seeks to further understand the cost and benefits of the potential technologies for CBDC and this emerging field,” reads the posting. According to the Federal Reserve System Careers page, the position has been open for more than 30 days.
“We are looking for a Lead Application Developer to implement example systems related to a CBDC. You will engage directly with management, other developers on the team, development operations teams, and vendors to ensure the Federal Reserve is well-positioned to design, develop, and implement technology to support a CBDC as may be required by the Board of Governors.”
Screenshot: Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s job posting. Source: Indeed.
A team of crypto developers has been forming at the San Francisco’s Fed at least since February, when it was looking for a software engineer to help develop and implement systems related to a CBDC initiative.
The recruitment efforts contradict the public stance of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors on CBDCs. On July 19, the central bank said on Twitter that it had not yet decided whether to issue a CBDC and “would only proceed with the issuance of a CBDC with an authorizing law.”
The possibility of a digital version of the U.S. dollar has stirred controversy in the country, promising to be a key talking point in the upcoming presidential election. Many opponents of CBDC argue that it threatens citizens’ privacy and could lead to governmental control, while supporters see it as a global application of blockchain technology.
In a recent event, presidential candidate and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis vowed to ban CBDCs in the United States if elected president. “If I am the president, on day one, we will nix central bank digital currency. Done. Dead. Not happening in this country,” he said during the Family Leadership Summit in Iowa.
US banking groups have urged Congress to close a so-called loophole letting stablecoin issuers offer yields through affiliate firms, fearing it undermines the banking system.
US and international law enforcement agencies have taken down servers and websites linked to the BlackSuit ransomware group and seized $1 million in crypto.
It says human rights in the UK “worsened” in 2024, with “credible reports of serious restrictions on freedom of expression”, as well as “crimes, violence, or threats of violence motivated by antisemitism” since the 7 October Hamas attack against Israel.
On free speech, while “generally provided” for, the report cites “specific areas of concern” around limits on “political speech deemed ‘hateful’ or ‘offensive'”.
Sir Keir Starmer has previously defended the UK’s record on free speech after concerns were raised by Mr Vance.
In response to the report, a UK government spokesperson said: “Free speech is vital for democracy around the world including here in the UK, and we are proud to uphold freedoms whilst keeping our citizens safe.”
Image: Keir Starmer and JD Vance have clashed in the past over free speech in the UK. Pics: PA
The US report highlights Britain’s public space protection orders, which allow councils to restrict certain activities in some public places to prevent antisocial behaviour.
It also references “safe access zones” around abortion clinics, which the Home Office says are designed to protect women from harassment or distress.
They have been criticised by Mr Vance before, notably back in February during a headline-grabbing speech at the Munich Security Conference.
Ministers have said the Online Safety Act is about protecting children, and repeatedly gone so far as to suggest people who are opposed to it are on the side of predators.
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The report comes months after Sir Keir bit back at Mr Vance during a summit at the White House, cutting in when Donald Trump’s VP claimed there are “infringements on free speech” in the UK.
“We’ve had free speech for a very long time, it will last a long time, and we are very proud of that,” the PM said.
But Mr Vance again raised concerns during a meeting with Foreign Secretary David Lammy at his country estate in Kent last week, saying he didn’t want the UK to go down a “very dark path” of losing free speech.
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The Trump administration itself has been accused of trying to curtail free speech and stifle criticism, most notably by targeting universities – Harvard chief among them.