Eswatini Central Bank Partners With German Firm to Explore CBDC
Eswatini recently became the latest African country to jump on the central bank digital currency (CBDC) bandwagon after its central bank selected Giesecke Devrient, a Germany-based technology firm, as its partner. An agreement signed by both parties aims to enable them to deepen their “understanding of the practicalities of implementing a CBDC in Eswatini.” Retail CBDC Presents Strongest Opportunity for Adoption The Southern African nation of Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) recently became the latest African country to signal its intention to issue a digital currency, after it....
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Her Majesty’s Treasury and the Bank of England have revealed the establishment of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) taskforce. According to the announcement, the group’s purpose aims to explore a potential UK CBDC. UK Entities Invoke a CBDC Taskforce to Explore a Central Bank-Issued Digital Currency Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) have been popping up throughout a number of countries and most are still in the exploration phase. A few countries like Venezuela, Sweden, and China are ahead of the game by a longshot in comparison to countries like the U.S., Canada, and....
The German central bank is considering alternatives to CBDC as a digital payment solutions Burkhard Balz, a German politician and executive board member of the country's central bank, said in a speech on Oct. 20 that it was crucial to build tools to restrict how the digital euro is used upon launch.Balz emphasized that people should only be able to use the central bank-backed digital euro as a mode of payment and not as a store of value. If the central bank digital currency has the same characteristics as traditional money, depositors could withdraw their funds in times of a crisis by....
The Bank of Ghana (BOG) says it has signed an agreement with Giesecke Devrient (GD) to implement a pilot central bank digital currency (CBDC) project. This pilot CBDC, which is a precursor to the e-cedi digital currency, is set to be tested with banks, payment service providers, merchants, consumers and other relevant stakeholders. Learning From the Trial Phase In a press release, the Ghanaian central bank says GD will provide the technology and a solution that suits Ghana’s requirements. The press statement adds that during the trial phase, a study seeking to look at “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....
Zimbabwe’s central bank, which has expressed its opposition to cryptocurrencies in the past, announced yesterday it is presently exploring the feasibility of rolling out its own central bank digital currency (CBDC). The bank also said its regulatory sandbox continues to garner interest.
CBDC Roadmap
The Zimbabwean central bank, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ), has reiterated that it prefers a central bank digital currency (CBDC) to cryptocurrencies, in its latest monetary policy statement. It adds it is now “actively exploring the feasibility of adopting a....