World Bank to Issue CHF Digital Bond Settled Using Swiss Franc Central Bank Digital Currency

The World Bank has announced that it will issue its first CHF digital bond on June 11. This 7-year, CHF 200 million ($219 million) bond is the largest CHF issuance by the World Bank since 2009. It utilizes distributed ledger technology and settles using Swiss Franc wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) from the Swiss … Read more

Nigeria-China Currency Swap: Activist Lawyer Accuses IMF and World Bank of ‘Economic Sabotage’ to Promote US Dollar, Urges Nigeria to Join BRICS

Nigerian human rights activist and lawyer, Femi Falana, has accused the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) of sabotaging the currency swap arrangement between China and Nigeria. Falana said the Nigerian central bank and the two global financial institutions are helping to perpetuate “the dominance of the United States dollar in Nigeria.” … Read more

India Seeks Common Crypto Framework for All Countries to Deal With ‘Many Collapses and Shocks in Cryptocurrencies’

India’s finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, said during her official visit to the U.S. that crypto regulation is a very important part of the discussion by the G20 countries given “so many collapses and shocks in cryptocurrencies.” She stressed: “We seek to develop a common framework for all countries to deal with this matter.” India Seeks … Read more

Report: Somalia to Fight Inflation and Counterfeiters With New Banknotes

According to the deputy governor of the Somalian central bank, Ali Yasin Wardheere, the institution plans to fight inflation and currency counterfeiters with newly issued shilling banknotes. The bank reportedly said it hopes to complete the process of replacing old and high-value shilling bills with newly designed banknotes in 2024. Preserving the Value of New … Read more

World Bank Report Forecasts Bleak Global Economic Outlook, Citing ‘Adverse Developments’ and ‘Long-Lasting Slowdown’

On Jan. 10, 2023, the World Bank published its Global Economic Prospects report, stating that the outlook for the global economy and future economic conditions is bleak. According to the report, 2023 growth forecasts have been cut across the board, with the global economy projected to grow by 1.7% in 2023 and 2.7% in 2024. … Read more

Report: Morocco Central Bank Governor Says Crypto Draft Law Now ‘Ready’

A Moroccan draft crypto law, which seeks to protect individuals from the risks associated with crypto trading, is ready and will soon be presented to stakeholders, Abdellatif Jouahiri, the governor of Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM), has said. Adoption of crypto by Moroccan residents is now inevitable hence a regulatory framework is needed. BAM to Hold Discussions … Read more

Dollar Loses to Digital Currencies in 2023, Former Russian President Medvedev Says

Digital fiat currencies will spread next year while the U.S. dollar will be losing its status of global reserve currency, according to Russia’s former head of state. In a string of tweets, Dmitry Medvedev gave his two cents on what the future holds for the world, a “humble contribution,” as he put it, to the … Read more

Strike Launches Bitcoin Lightning Network-Enabled Money Transfers to Africa

United States-based users of Strike, a digital payments platform built on Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, can now transfer funds instantly and at a low cost to Kenya, Ghana, and Nigeria via the recently added new feature known as “Send Globally.” The new feature instantly converts the funds to local currencies prior to moving them to recipients’ … Read more

Remittances to Low and Middle Income Countries in 2022 Up by 5% to $626 Billion — Latest World Bank Report

Despite the headwinds that have dominated the year, remittances to low and middle-income countries in 2022 still grew by 5% to $626 billion, the World Bank Migration and Development Brief has said. Africa, where the cost of sending $200 averaged 7.8% in 2022, is the “most severely exposed to the concurrent crises.” Impact of the … Read more

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 … Read more