On the Programmability and Uniformity of Digital Currencies

Central bankers argue that programmable digital currencies may compromise the uniformity of money. We explore this in a stylized model where programmable money arises endogenously, and differently programmed monies have varying liquidity. Programmability provides private value by easing commitment frictions but imposes social costs under informational frictions. Preserving uniformity is not necessarily socially beneficial. Banning programmable money lowers welfare when informational frictions are mild but improves it when commitment frictions are low. These insights suggest programmable money could be more beneficial on permissionless blockchains.