The persistent evolution of global finance is not always obvious, but every few decades, a new technology, event or agreement fundamentally resets the monetary system’s core machinery. We sit at one of those inflection points and few realize how consequential it could become. In 1944, world leaders gathered in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, to architect a new international financial order. Out of the ashes of war, the dollar became the central “settlement asset,” global exchange rates found their anchor, and the rules of global commerce became standardized and interoperable. That system, for all its flaws, brought a clarity and stability that propelled half a century of cross-border growth. Today, as multiple countries accelerate pilot programs for central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs, and experiment with sovereign blockchains, we’re witnessing the birth of a new international monetary framework.