Lawmakers have introduced a bill that would allow the US Treasury to create a digital dollar.

The electronic dollar, a virtual representation of a US dollar, would allow people to make payments using tokens on mobile phones or through cards versus cash.

ECASH (electronic cash), as the bill calls it, would be a bearer instrument that wouldn't require payment processing intermediaries, such as SWIFT, the world's largest payment messaging network. That means payments using ECASH would be near instantaneous - even across national borders - and processing fees would likely be dramatically reduced.

One possible drawback: unlike dollar bills or money exchanged through electronic funds, ECASH tokens would not be tied to a bank or credit account. So, if the card or mobile passcode enabling access to funds were lost, there would be no way to recover the money.

Earlier this month, US President Joe Biden issued an executive order calling for more research on developing a national digital currency through the Federal Reserve Bank, or "The Fed." The order highlighted the need for more regulatory oversight of cryptocurrencies, which have been used for nefarious activities such as money laundering.

Even before the executive order, the US had been exploring the creation of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). But its efforts have fallen far short of other countries. The recent flurry of interest in creating a national cryptocurrency is evidence the US is attempting to catch up with the efforts of other nations already piloting their own central bank digital currencies.

"As digital payment and currency technologies continue to rapidly expand and with Russia, China, and over 90 countries worldwide already researching and launching some form of Central Bank Digital Currency, it is absolutely critical for the US to remain a world leader in the development and regulation of digital currency and other digital assets," Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass), said in a statement.

Lynch was joined by four other members of Congress in filing the bill: Jes