Digital Shekel: Israel’s CBDC Project Is Well Underway

A survey carried out by the central bank of Israel has returned mostly positive responses from stakeholders regarding the possible issuance of a digital shekel currency. Many of the participants in the public consultations support the continued development of the project, the regulator said. Bank of Israel Releases Results From Consultations on Digital Shekel Project Israel’s monetary authority has recently published a paper detailing the outcome of public consultations held to gather opinions from interested parties on its central bank digital currency (CBDC) project. The regulator....

Despite the pilot, the central bank's deputy governor said he was apprehensive about launching a full-scale CBDC in Israel, and referred to Bitcoin as a "pyramid scam." The Bank of Israel has reportedly already issued a central bank digital currency through a pilot test of a digital shekel.According to a Monday report from the Jerusalem Post, Bank of Israel deputy governor, Andrew Abir, said the financial institution had started to conduct a pilot program for a digital shekel. Speaking at a conference of the Fair Value Forum of IDC Herzliya, Abir added that he was not optimistic about the....

The bank has been exploring the introduction of a CBDC since 2017. The Bank of Israel is accelerating its research for the potential issuance of a central bank digital currency.In a statement from the central bank today, the Bank of Israel said it was preparing an action plan to explore the benefits of a digital shekel on the economy. Though the bank said it had not yet decided whether to issue a central bank digital currency, or CBDC, it added it would be prepared to do so should the benefits “outweigh the costs and potential risks.”The central bank said it may consider issuing a CBDC if....

Stakeholders believe that the digital shekel would boost competition, but remain divided on the matter of privacy. Despite the fact that it still hasn't made a final decision on the launch of the “digital shekel,” Israel’s central bank reported that the public feedback on the project is mainly positive.According to Reuters, on Monday, The Bank of Israel summarized the results of the public consultation on its central bank digital currency (CBDC) plans. It has received 33 responses from different sectors, with half of them coming from abroad and 17 from the domestic fintech community. While....

The Project Icebreaker initiative aimed to improve cross-border payments by reducing costs and increasing speed and transparency, with a final report expected in Q1 2023. The Bank for International Settlements, or BIS, has reported it will be partnering with the central banks of Israel, Norway and Sweden to explore international retail and remittance payments use cases for central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs.In a Sept. 28 announcement, the BIS said the collaboration — named Project Icebreaker — will involve the bank’s Innovation Hub Nordic Centre testing key functions and the....