The Bank of Russia’s First Deputy Governor Olga Skorobogatova will leave the central bank on December 2, the central bank announced. She worked in the private sector until joining the central bank in 2014. Ms Skorobogatova oversaw the national payment system, IT and financial technology, including the digital ruble central bank digital currency (CBDC). She…
IMF staff members have suggested a high-level four-stage framework emphasizing regulation, education, design and incentives to enhance CBDC adoption.Among the countries that have launched central bank digital currency (CBDC) or are conducting large-scale pilots, adoption remains slow and limited due to various challenges such as lack of public awareness and trust, preference for existing payment…
After several years of exploring the possibility of introducing a digital currency in Canada, the central bank is shelving the idea. The Bank of Canada confirmed to CBC News it has shifted its focus away from the idea of introducing a digital Canadian dollar, which could be used for online purchases and money transfers. The…
‘Money shapes economies, economies shape nations, nations shape history.’ This quip from Larry Summers, though pithy, contains a kernel of truth. It is equally true that through history, bursts of technological innovation have intersected with changing needs of the economy to generate profound implications for society. Look no further than the introduction of paper money…
The Bank of Russia wants the country’s largest banks to support a digital ruble for retail and commercial use by July next year. The banks will need to enable their customers to “open and top up digital ruble accounts, make transfers, and accept digital rubles in their infrastructure,” the central bank said Thursday. After that,…
Cross-border payment inefficiencies are a significant barrier to trade both within Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) and between LAC and other regions. This paper provides a comprehensive review of historical efforts undertaken by various countries within the LAC region to address these challenges. We also explore the potential of recent financial innovations, such as…
The Bank of Israel is calling on various entities and organizations to join an initial experiment and develop innovative and diverse use cases within the framework of the action plan for the possible issuance of a digital shekel. The Bank of Israel has launched its Digital Shekel Challenge, following the recent announcement of a central…
n just 6 months after Kazakhstan launched the digital tenge, its Central Bank Digital Currency, over 10 innovative CBDC card services have become available to the country’s population of 20 million. Altyn Bank, Eurasian Bank and Halyk Bank leveraged the Way4 digital payments software system to swiftly join this CBDC project and onboard 72% of early adopters of…
The country has successfully executed its first cross-border trade transaction using digital credentials, the eCedi central bank digital currency (CBDC), and a Singaporean stablecoin.The landmark pilot was part of Project DESFT (Digital Economy Semi-Fungible Token), a collaborative initiative between the Bank of Ghana (BoG) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).Addressing the launch event at…
By Heng Wang Individuals and small firms are facing challenges related to financial inclusion, including limited access to and high costs of banking services, lack of financial literacy, and informal financial practices, among other issues. Despite the progress made to address financial exclusion, these challenges persist: 18% of people around the world still lack a…