Norway’s Central Bank on CBDC Progress: We’re Not Falling Behind

Norway’s central bank is on track to decide by 2025 whether to adopt a central bank digital currency (CBDC), but officials stress there’s no urgency. Despite Norway’s cashless society, with only 2% using cash, the bank is carefully studying both retail and wholesale CBDC options, emphasizing complex issues and the need for collaboration with other … Read more

Australian Central Bank Prioritizes Wholesale CBDC

The Australian Central Bank is focusing on a wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) due to its potential economic benefits compared to a retail CBDC. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has launched Project Acacia, a three-year plan to explore wholesale CBDC opportunities. While the RBA and Treasury could still consider a retail CBDC, a … Read more

France and Hong Kong Collaborate to Advance Global Tokenization Market With CBDC Initiatives

The Banque de France (BDF) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) have announced a collaboration on wholesale central bank digital currency (wCBDC). This partnership includes the HKMA’s involvement in Wave 2 of the European Central Bank’s Eurosystem exploratory work. The institutions signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to innovate in wCBDC and tokenization markets, … Read more

Central Bank of the Philippines to Complete Wholesale CBDC Pilot This Year, Hints at Securities Focused Use Case

The Central Bank of the Philippines revealed that it aims to conclude the ongoing wholesale CBDC pilot, Project Agila, later this year. The pilot, which currently includes the participation of six local financial institutions, might be the gate for democratizing access to securities according to Deputy Governor for Payments and Currency Management Sector Mamerto Tangonan. … Read more

Hong Kong Launches Project Ensemble, a Wholesale CBDC and Tokenized Deposits Initiative

The government of Hong Kong has announced Project Ensemble, an initiative that will test the functionality of a wholesale central bank digital currency (WCBDC) and the movement of tokenized deposits. If there is “sufficient interest” in the project, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) will conduct a live issuance of the WCBDC in the future. … Read more

New York Fed and 9 Major Banks to Test ‘Interoperable Network of Central Bank Wholesale Digital Money’

Nine major financial institutions and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York have started to experiment with a digital dollar proof of concept to see if distributed ledger technology can improve settlement between central banks, commercial banks, and regulated non-banks. The New York Fed details that the proof of concept will be done in a … Read more

Bank of Thailand Needs More Time to Complete and Launch Retail Digital Currency

The central bank of Thailand is not going to rush with the launch of its digital currency as it’s not yet sure about the benefits it would bring. According to the head of the monetary authority, the development of the state-issued coin may take several years. Thailand’s Central Bank Wants to Better Understand Risks of … Read more