Macroprudential Considerations for Tokenized Cash

Abstract

This paper examines the financial stability risks associated with tokenized cash, a subset of stablecoins fully reserved with cash and cash equivalents. Using a combination of on-chain data together with uniquely collected wallet address labels, we construct empirical measures of liquidity ratios and run off rates on the largest cash token and characterize its users and their behavior. The overall circulation of tokenized cash is largely insulated from crypto price movements, though price changes correlate with re-balancing between smart contracts and private wallets. A liquidity ratio calculation, similar in concept to Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR), indicates that tokenized cash has at least two times the amount of High-Quality Liquid Assets (HQLA) when compared to the worst observed gross outflow over 30-day ahead periods. We discuss the implications of tokenized cash on safe asset creation, credit supply, and monetary policy transmission. The adoption of tokenized cash can reduce moral hazard risks from public guarantees and expand credit provision through market-based lending enabled by smart contracts.

Keywords: Tokenized cash, tokenized deposits, stablecoin, LCR, financial stability, narrow banking, credit intermediation

JEL Classification: G1, G2, G21, G23, G28, E42, E49, E40