Bolsonarista deputy says that digital real is a form of State control – 10/02/2024 – Panel

Bolsonaro deputy Júlia Zanatta (PL-SC) presented a bill to prohibit the extinction of paper money to replace Drex, the digital real, a virtual representation of Brazilian currency and a project led by the president of the Central Bank, Roberto Campos Neto.

The text says that the circulation of paper money cannot be replaced exclusively by digital currency and that Drex will not be “forced on any operator of the National Financial System or final consumer, who will have the freedom to choose the means of payment to be used.”

Zanatta’s proposal is a response to a project filed by deputy Reginaldo Lopes (PT-MG) in 2020 that determines the extinction of paper money in the country.

The SC deputy’s project provides that any change in the circulation of paper money that results in its extinction must be submitted to Congress for approval by an absolute majority of the votes of the members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.

In justification, she says that Drex allows extensive monitoring of citizens’ financial transactions, “allowing the government an unprecedented level of control over each individual’s financial life.”

“This could lead to the ‘financial cancellation’ of political opponents and government critics, blocking their accounts and limiting their access to essential resources”, he adds, without explaining why this would happen.

It also cites the risk of financial exclusion for those who do not have access to digital technology, in addition to the potential danger of fraud and digital attacks. Data from the end of 2022 from the Central Bank indicate that around 190 million people (82% of the population, at the time) had a current account.

The concern about a possible appropriation of resources by the State is mentioned by the parliamentarian in videos on social networks. In justifying the project, she says that the elimination of paper money would transfer financial control from citizens to the government and digital financial institutions, restricting individual autonomy over the use of their own resources.

“This move is seen as an attempt to impose a traceable digital totalitarian regime, suppressing financial freedom in exchange for tighter centralized control.”

To the Panel, the deputy states that “technology can allow the government to control what we buy, where and when, limiting the use of money according to its guidelines.”

“In addition, there is a bill in progress that proposes the elimination of paper money. The result of this combination of factors is alarming: ‘Only those who obey’ eat, with the government deciding how each citizen can spend their own money.”

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