Opportunities and Challenges of the U.S. Dollar as an Increasingly Global Currency: A Federal Reserve Perspective

The rapid growth of demand for U.S. currency over the past two decades, especially the proportion estimated to be held abroad, has posed challenges for the Federal Reserve in meeting its congressionally mandated responsibilities for currency availability and distribution. Those challenges lie in making certain that the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) prints adequate amounts of currency; that overseas distribution channels have sufficient capacity to distribute U.S. currency when and where it is needed; and that the integrity of U.S. currency is maintained by monitoring counterfeiting activity. In the process of meeting these challenges, the Federal Reserve has improved its methods of forecasting demand for U.S. currency, expanded currency distribution channels, and worked with the BEP and the U.S. Secret Service to protect against counterfeiting threats. This article gives an overview of the evolution of the Federal Reserve's responsibilities for U.S. currency, particularly in relation to the increase in foreign demand over the past two decades, and also discusses work on counterfeit deterrence.