China’s Digital Yuan Nears $1 Trillion in Transactions, PBOC Official Reveals

China’s digital yuan initiative has advanced considerably, backed by over a decade of research and four years of pilot experimentation, according to Lu Lei, Deputy Governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC). Trials for the Chinese central bank digital currency (CBDC) have been conducted in 17 different areas, accumulating a total transaction value of … Read more

Basel Committee Gives Permissioned Stablecoins ‘Preferential Treatment’ in Amended Crypto Asset Standard Amidst Heavy Criticism

The Basel Committee, responsible for setting standards for bank regulation, has revised its crypto asset standard, introducing new considerations that impact stablecoins. The updated standard favors permissioned stablecoins, such as JPM Coin, over those issued on public chains. This has elicited criticism from figures in the crypto community, who accuse the committee of attempting to … Read more

ECB’s Joachim Nagel Urges Central Banks to Evolve: ‘We Need to Work on Our Business Model’

Joachim Nagel, President of the Deutsche Bundesbank and Member of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB), has raised concerns about central banks’ business model. “If part of your core product is loosening attractiveness then you have to think about another new core product,” he stressed. ‘We Need to Speed up on All … Read more

Report: UAE Central Bank Implements Digital Currency Strategy

The central bank in the United Arab Emirates said it has started implementing its digital currency strategy with partners G42 Cloud and R3. According to the central bank, the digital currency initiative is expected to “further position and solidify the UAE as a leading global financial hub.” CBDC Strategy to Focus on Three Pillars The … Read more

BIS Releases Report On ‘Project Icebreaker’ — Develops Cross-Border Retail CBDC Payment Model

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has released a report summarizing the “Project Icebreaker” trial, which explored the potential advantages and difficulties of utilizing a retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) in cross-border payments. The experiment was designed to test “the technical feasibility of conducting cross-border – cross-currency transactions between different [distrubuted ledger technology]-based CBDC … Read more

BIS General Manager Casts Doubt on Stablecoins, Claiming Tokens Do Not Benefit From Regulations or Central Planning

According to Agustin Carstens, the head of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), cryptocurrencies have lost the “battle” against fiat currencies issued by the world’s central banks. While speaking at the Monetary Authority of Singapore on Wednesday, Carstens stressed that stablecoins are not reliable because they lack the “institutional arrangements and social conventions behind them.” … Read more

Most Retail Crypto Investors Lost Money Over the Last 7 Years, According to BIS Analysis

According to data from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), published in the latest BIS Bulletin No. 69, researchers assessed that, on average, most users lost money on their investments over the past seven years. Onchain data, metrics from exchanges, and cryptocurrency application download statistics gathered by BIS researchers suggest that most median retail crypto … Read more