The US Federal Reserve is taking legal action against bitcoin magazine in an attempt to silence criticism of its recently launched FedNow interbank clearing and settlement service.
In a letter sent to the publication by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, the US central bank claims that bitcoin Magazine products that parody its services are not protected speech, but rather an unauthorized infringement of its image and trademarks.
The dispute centers on the use of the FedNow Service image and trademark on a line of products sold by bitcoin Magazine that seeks to criticize the surveillance capabilities of the FedNow system and how it threatens American civil liberties.
The Federal Reserve alleges that bitcoin Magazine used the trademark without permission to mislead readers into believing there is a connection between the publication and the central bank.
In response to the allegations, bitcoin Magazine has written an open letter to Federal Reserve Financial Services Deputy General Counsel Thaddeus Murphy:
Dear Tadeo Murphy,
On behalf of the entire bitcoin Magazine team, I wanted to take the time to thank you for your thoughtful inquiry after browsing our online store. Doing your Christmas shopping early, you love to see it! Please let us know if we can ship a box of merchandise to any of the 12 Federal Reserve Banks. You may enjoy our content from the latest print version. bitcoin Magazinewhich analyzes the damage his policies have caused to our economy and our country.
Feel free to send us a list of coveted items and we will be sure to send them to you. We want to do our part to “stimulate” the economy!
To work. We would like to inform you that while we received your cease and desist request, we refuse to comply. We will not be intimidated by his efforts to silence criticism.
As you may know, our publication and our readers are deeply concerned about the new FedNow interbank communication system. We believe not only is it possibly unconstitutional, but it threatens the very freedoms that all freedom-loving American citizens should value.
With that in mind, we believe it is within our First Amendment rights to exercise expression on the issue and, to that end, we will defend our right to sell merchandise that makes buyers aware, through fair use images, of our position that this system is a threat to civil liberties.
I would like to make some direct comments on the quotes present in your letter, in order to better articulate what I am sure will be considered a disappointing response:
“The Federal Reserve has widely used and promoted the FEDNOW brand and has built up substantial goodwill in this invaluable asset. “Financial institutions and consumers associate the FEDNOW brand with the Federal Reserve and its services.”
An interesting point. To begin with, what goodwill has the Federal Reserve created? Have you seen the state of the working class today? Perhaps you’ve already forgotten how Federal Reserve policy directly led to poor management of bond portfolios at regional banks across the country, such as Silicon Valley Bank, Signature, Silvergate, or First Republic? Perhaps you have already forgotten about the historic inflation rates seen across the United States since government-imposed lockdowns practically forced the Treasury to stimulate the economy to the tune of trillions of dollars?
There is no good will, Mr. Murphy. And certainly not substantial goodwill either.
“The Federal Reserve recently learned that bitcoin Magazine is selling t-shirts, caps, and other wearable items under the FEDNOW name, as shown in the screenshot below. bitcoin Magazine’s use of the FEDNOW mark in this manner is likely to cause confusion, errors, or deception. “Consumers are likely to believe that the team is associated with, affiliated with, or endorsed by the Federal Reserve, when such association or relationship does not exist.”
This is false. bitcoin Magazine is exercising its First Amendment rights over social commentary and parody. I’m sure you’ll notice the all-seeing eye that symbolizes the state of total financial surveillance your agency seeks to impose on the American financial system.
We don’t think anyone familiar with our editorial guidelines and general stance on the world would ever associate bitcoin Magazine with the Federal Reserve. We agree with your statement that “there is no such association or relationship.”
We have no interest in causing confusion, errors or deception. That sounds more like a job for those responsible for telling the market they wouldn’t raise rates after massive monetary easing, and then raising them faster than at any other time in American financial history.
We look forward to defending our First Amendment rights and the opportunity to make clear to all Americans the difference between the open, free, and decentralized financial system that is bitcoin and the centralized FedNow system that threatens our nation’s fundamental values.
Better,
Mark Goodwin
Chief editor
bitcoin Magazine
PDF versions of the Federal Reserve’s cease and desist letter and our legal response:
