DFC

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CBN approves rewards scheme for merchants, users of eNaira
CBN approves rewards scheme for merchants, users of eNaira
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reportedly approved a reward scheme for users of the eNaira, including merchants. This includes providing merchants with the required promotional materials, subsidising the current Merchant Service Charge by 50% and activation of a nationwide sensitization which early business adopters of eNaira can leverage on to market its wider adoption.
#Fintech#CBDC#Africa#DFC
·businessday.ng·
CBN approves rewards scheme for merchants, users of eNaira
Federal Reserve Board updates FedNow Service timing to mid-2023
Federal Reserve Board updates FedNow Service timing to mid-2023
The Federal Reserve Banks have narrowed the timing of the FedNow Service launch to mid-year 2023, specifically targeting a production rollout of the service in the May to July timeframe. This further defines the previously communicated 2023 launch window for the anticipated instant payments service and comes as the FedNow Pilot Program prepares to enter technical testing for the service starting in September.
#Fintech#FastPayments#CBDC#UnitedStates#DFC
·federalreserve.gov·
Federal Reserve Board updates FedNow Service timing to mid-2023
FIS is latest payments firm to launch CBDC Lab
FIS is latest payments firm to launch CBDC Lab
FIS, the banking sector solution provider, announced plans to help central banks to launch central bank digital currencies (CBDC) through its CBDC Virtual Lab, which is in collaboration with digital payments startup M10 Networks.
#Fintech#CBDC#M10#DFC
·ledgerinsights.com·
FIS is latest payments firm to launch CBDC Lab
Cash, COVID-19 and the Prospects for a Canadian Digital Dollar
Cash, COVID-19 and the Prospects for a Canadian Digital Dollar
The Bank of Canada published a paper that provides an analysis of cash trends in Canada before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. It finds that cash demand has been strong pre-pandemic and increased sharply during the pandemic. While cash use fell initially due to the decreased number of in-person shopping opportunities, it recovered as containment measures eased. The paper concludes that the long-term trend away from cash use as a method of payment could lead to a decline of merchant acceptance over time and erode the broader demand for cash more generally, which could warrant the Bank of Canada issuing a digital dollar.
#Fintech#CBDC#Cash#Canada#DFC
·bankofcanada.ca·
Cash, COVID-19 and the Prospects for a Canadian Digital Dollar
Indonesian central bank provides update on CBDC plans
Indonesian central bank provides update on CBDC plans
Perry Warjiyo, the Governor of the Bank Indonesia (BI), provided an update on the central banks's CBDC plans. It sounds like the BI is leaning towards a distributed ledger technology (DLT) based platform, but it is undecided as to whther it will be a retail or wholesale digital currency. Building in interoperability will be important to open up the possibility of cross-border payments, particularly in the ASEAN+5 region, where there is already cooperation with Thailand and Malaysia through the support for the implementation of QR Cross Border and Local Currency Settlement (LCS).
#Fintech#CBDC#Asia#DFC
·bot.or.th·
Indonesian central bank provides update on CBDC plans
China's Digital Yuan App Can Now Link to Users' Bank Accounts
China's Digital Yuan App Can Now Link to Users' Bank Accounts
The digital yuan payment app reportedly can now be linked to bank accounts to ensure that funds in users' e-CNY wallets never run dry. The app can automatically draw amounts from a linked account at a commercial bank when the e-CNY wallet's balance is not enough. Users also have the option not to link the app to a bank account.
#Fintech#CBDC#China#DFC
·yicaiglobal.com·
China's Digital Yuan App Can Now Link to Users' Bank Accounts
China Introduces Digital Yuan Payments in Ningbo Subway, Guangzhou Buses
China Introduces Digital Yuan Payments in Ningbo Subway, Guangzhou Buses
Ningbo Rail Transit, the operator of the subway system in the city of Ningbo in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang, has reportedly launched payments in digital yuan at 125 stations. Also, bus riders in Guangzhou will be able to buy tickets with digital yuan. They will be able to use their e-CNY wallets on 10 bus lines.
#Fintech#CBDC#China#DFC
·news.bitcoin.com·
China Introduces Digital Yuan Payments in Ningbo Subway, Guangzhou Buses
Reserve Bank Australia says a live CBDC likely to be wholesale
Reserve Bank Australia says a live CBDC likely to be wholesale
Members of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Payment Systems Board discussed the increasing interest in central bank digital currency (CBDC) internationally and in Australia. Many see an increased likelihood of issuing some form of CBDC in the future, especially to support wholesale transactions.
#Fintech#CBDC#Australia#DFC
·rba.gov.au·
Reserve Bank Australia says a live CBDC likely to be wholesale
Africa’s first central bank e-currency is yet to have recurring users
Africa’s first central bank e-currency is yet to have recurring users
Nigeria’s central bank believes its digital currency, the eNaira, has scored wins in the ten months since it was launched last October. The app has been downloaded 840,000 times, nearly a third of those converting to active wallets. But, the news should be taken with a healthy dose of skepticism as at an average of 1.35 transactions per active wallet, the eNaira has not convinced its users to do a lot with it. At N22,000 ($52), the currency’s average transaction value is way behind the regular naira: in 2021, Nigeria’s financial sector processed electronic payments at an average of N720,000 ($1,700) per transaction.
#Fintech#CBDC#Africa#DFC
·qz.com·
Africa’s first central bank e-currency is yet to have recurring users
Banco de la República estudia crear una moneda digital en Colombia
Banco de la República estudia crear una moneda digital en Colombia
The Governor of Colombia's Banco de la República, Leonardo Villar, reportedly confirmed that the central bank is evaluating the possibility of issuing central banks digital currency (CBDC). No details were provided. [Read more at El Colombiano] A few days ago, Luis Carlos Reyes, head of Dirección de Impuestos y Aduanas Nacionales (DIAN), the country's tax authority, reportedly said that the government was planning to issue a digital currency to curb tax evasion. It's not clear whether these two stories are related.
#Fintech#CBDC#LATAM#DFC
·elcolombiano.com·
Banco de la República estudia crear una moneda digital en Colombia
Minutes of the July 2022 Bank of England CBDC Engagement Forum
Minutes of the July 2022 Bank of England CBDC Engagement Forum
A Member of the Forum presented on potential business models for Payment Interface Providers (PIPs) in a CBDC ecosystem. The presentation set out that PIPs would likely undertake activities suggested in the Bank's 2020 Discussion Paper on CBDC such as onboarding clients, conducting KYC (Know Your Costumer) and AML (Anti Money Laundering) checks, authenticating users and providing consumer protection and overlay services, among others. The presentation then laid out a set of costs that such a PIP would likely incur in offering those services. A second Member presented a view on how the private sector could collaborate with policymakers to deliver on some of the G7 Principles on CBDC (published in October 2021).
#Fintech#CBDC#UnitedKingdom#DFC
·bankofengland.co.uk·
Minutes of the July 2022 Bank of England CBDC Engagement Forum
No Negative Rates, Less Need for Cash: Euros Return to the ECB
No Negative Rates, Less Need for Cash: Euros Return to the ECB
Demand for euro banknotes dwindled after the European Central Bank concluded an eight-year experiment with negative interest rates, suggesting households, businesses and banks are dissolving cash piles created to circumvent deposit charges. Banknotes in circulation started falling in the week through July 22, when policy makers raised rates. Since then, notes worth 16.8 billion euros ($17.1 billion) have left the system -- the biggest drop since early 2020.
#Fintech#CBDC#Cash#Eurozone#DFC
·bloomberg.com·
No Negative Rates, Less Need for Cash: Euros Return to the ECB
FedNow is a better alternative to a CBDC, Federal Reserve governor says
FedNow is a better alternative to a CBDC, Federal Reserve governor says
Many of the challenges that Fedcoin fans say the central bank digital currency (CBDC) will solve will be addressed by the upcoming FedNow payment service, according to US Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman. “FedNow will… allow consumers and businesses to make payments conveniently, in real time, on any day, and with immediate availability of funds for receivers. Our assessment of these benefits has not changed even as we consider whether a CBDC might fit into the future U.S. money and payments landscape… Completing and implementing FedNow is a high priority, and we expect it to be available by mid-2023.”
#Fintech#CBDC#UnitedStates#DFC
·federalreserve.gov·
FedNow is a better alternative to a CBDC, Federal Reserve governor says
Huobi explains what went wrong with HUSD after stablecoin is back on track
Huobi explains what went wrong with HUSD after stablecoin is back on track
The fully reserve-backed HUSD stablecoin lost its peg on August 18, 2022, trading as low as $0.82, although it regained the $1.00 peg the next day. According to the HUSD team, the depeg was caused by a decision to close market maker accounts in some regions to comply with regulations. The time difference in banking hours had created a gap that led to a liquidity problem, leading to HUSD falling from its peg.
#Fintech#CryptoAssets#Stablecoins#HUSD#DFC
·cointelegraph.com·
Huobi explains what went wrong with HUSD after stablecoin is back on track
New Auditor for Stablecoin Issuer Tether Confirms Slashing of Commercial Paper Holdings
New Auditor for Stablecoin Issuer Tether Confirms Slashing of Commercial Paper Holdings
BDO Italia has reaffirmed stablecoin issuer Tether's consolidated reserves report that showed a 58% quarterly decline in commercial paper holdings to $8.5 billion as of June 30. Tether also confirmed its expectation that commercial papers will be down to $200 million by the end of August and zero before the end of the year.
#Fintech#CryptoAssets#Stablecoins#Tether#DFC
·coindesk.com·
New Auditor for Stablecoin Issuer Tether Confirms Slashing of Commercial Paper Holdings
Guaranteeing freedom of payment choice: access to cash in the euro area
Guaranteeing freedom of payment choice: access to cash in the euro area
The European Central Bank (ECB) published a paper about the Eurosystem’s commitment to the principle that every individual in the euro area should be able to decide how to make day-to-day payments, regardless of their individual payment preference, geographical location or technological savviness. On the basis of the ECB’s most recent data, despite the gradual decline in cash transactions, cash is the most popular payment instrument among euro area citizens for day-to-day transactions at the point of sale or person-to-person payments. In addition, cash is used for savings and liquidity, especially in times of crisis or uncertainty.
#Fintech#CBDC#Cash#Eurozone#DFC
·ecb.europa.eu·
Guaranteeing freedom of payment choice: access to cash in the euro area
Nigerians to access eNaira through USSD
Nigerians to access eNaira through USSD
The Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, has reportedly said that Nigerians will be able to transact on eNaira central bank digital currency (CBDC) wallets through the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) code on mobile phones. Nigerians will only have to dial *997# from their phones to carry out transactions on their phones. The Governor also reported that the eNaira has been used to carry out transactions worth 4 billion naira ($9.3 million) since it was introduced last October, and there are now about 270,000 active wallets.
#Fintech#CBDC#USSD#Africa#DFC
·punchng.com·
Nigerians to access eNaira through USSD
E-Money tokens, tokenised money-market shares, and tokenised bank deposits
E-Money tokens, tokenised money-market shares, and tokenised bank deposits
This column introduces the available stablecoins and discusses the possible impact of the forthcoming Markets in Crypto-assets regulation by the European Commission on e-money issuers. The authors argue that the regulation may spur regulatory arbitrage in Europe and lead commercial banks to offer tokenised deposits on the decentralised ledger of a public blockchain.
#Fintech#CryptoAssets#Stablecoins#Regulation#Europe#DFC
·cepr.org·
E-Money tokens, tokenised money-market shares, and tokenised bank deposits
Electronic Payments Exceeded Cash for First Time in Saudi Arabia, 2021
Electronic Payments Exceeded Cash for First Time in Saudi Arabia, 2021
Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) issued a report on the results of an extensive study conducted to measure used payment methods in the Kingdom during 2021, which aimed to assess consumer payment habits (cash and non-cash), across all market sectors; individuals, business, and the government sector. The study indicated that - for the first time in the Kingdom - cash is no longer the most used method of payment by individuals, as electronic payments of individuals have grown significantly to reach 57% in 2021 of the total number of transactions executed, compared to just 36% in 2019.
#MiddleEast#Payments#Fintech#Cash#DFC
·sama.gov.sa·
Electronic Payments Exceeded Cash for First Time in Saudi Arabia, 2021
Central Bank Digital Currency: Will Banks Survive
Central Bank Digital Currency: Will Banks Survive
Will an introduction of CBDC cause disintermediation? I provide empirical and theoretical evidence that CBDC will not necessarily crowd out bank deposits in economies with significant demand for currency. I estimate the model for the US using data on households' payment choices and find that non-interest-bearing CBDC will lead instead to an inflow of deposits caused by cash substitution. Banks then lower deposit rates and lend more. Similarly, banks will not contract lending if CBDC is intermediated even if they experience an outflow of deposits. Finally, I show that CBDC can lead to disintermediation when it is interest-bearing.
#CBDC#Fintech#DFC
·papers.ssrn.com·
Central Bank Digital Currency: Will Banks Survive
Stablecoins in Three Dimensions: Foundations of Value in the Crypto-economy
Stablecoins in Three Dimensions: Foundations of Value in the Crypto-economy
This paper identifies three main components of any stablecoin, the peg, token and backing or reserve, that can be interpreted as three dimensions of (exchange) value fulfilled by the three functions of money: a unit of account, means of exchange, and store of value. By doing so, the stablecoin concept is not be characterized as a separate and self-contained asset class, but rather as an overarching and general meta-category from which a multitude of other classes and types of crypto-assets can be derived. By noting that different types of money and financial assets emerge from the different ways in which the three functions of money interact, the paper identifies five main cases from the various ways in which peg, token, and reserve are recombined. Various types of traditional financial assets belonging to each of these five cases and discusses how the various types of crypto-assets (and stablecoins) are identified and mapped into each of them.
#Fintech#CryptoAssets#Stablecoins#DFC
·papers.ssrn.com·
Stablecoins in Three Dimensions: Foundations of Value in the Crypto-economy
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe 'Developed a Roadmap for Adoption of CBDC
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe 'Developed a Roadmap for Adoption of CBDC
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has developed a roadmap for "adoption" of central bank digital currency (CBDC) in Zimbabwe, according to its August 11, 2022 Mid-Term Monetary Policy Statement. The next step will be imminent the publication of a consultation paper aimed at "fostering a broad and transparent public dialogue regarding the potential benefits and risks of CBDC." https://www.rbz.co.zw/documents/mps/2022/Monetary-Policy-Statement-August-2022-.pdf
#Fintech#CBDC#Africa#DFC
·news.bitcoin.com·
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe 'Developed a Roadmap for Adoption of CBDC
Russia plans to roll out digital ruble across all banks in 2024
Russia plans to roll out digital ruble across all banks in 2024
The Bank of Russia continues working towards the gradual introduction of central bank digital currency (CBDC) according to the latest monetary policy update. The prototype digital ruble platform is currently being tested, and in 2023 the central bank plans to start pilot testing, including beta tests of digital ruble-based smart contracts for trades by a limited number of participants. If all goes to plan, the connection of banks and credit institutions to the digital ruble platform in will happen in 2024.
#Fintech#CBDC#Russia#DFC
·cbr.ru·
Russia plans to roll out digital ruble across all banks in 2024
Beac to oversee CAR's cryptocurrency project
Beac to oversee CAR's cryptocurrency project
"The Bank of Central African States (Beac) will oversee the cryptocurrency adoption project ongoing in the Central African Republic. The decision was taken following the July 21, 2022 meeting of the Ministerial Committee of the Central African Monetary Union (Umac) in Douala." https://www.beac.int/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Communiqu%C3%A9-de-Presse-CM-Extra-21-juillet-2022.pdf
#Fintech#CryptoAssets#CBDC#Africa#DFC
·businessincameroon.com·
Beac to oversee CAR's cryptocurrency project
Why Worry about Financial Exclusion?
Why Worry about Financial Exclusion?
"We use economic principles along with evidence from the data and the academic and policy literature to discuss frictions that might lead to inefficient financial exclusion in the United States, defined here as a suboptimal allocation of bank account services. Private market initiatives—such as financial education schemes or new online banks—or new technologies—such as prepaid cards—can help mitigate such frictions. But if the frictions persist, intervention by authorities may be justified."
#Fintech#FinancialInclusion#CBDC#DFC
·clevelandfed.org·
Why Worry about Financial Exclusion?
Unbanked in America: A Review of the Literature
Unbanked in America: A Review of the Literature
"The unbanked rate has been decreasing in the United States, but it remains high compared to unbanked rates in other developed economies. Lower-income and racial and ethnic minority households are more likely to lack access to a bank account than white households with higher incomes. Fees and minimum balance requirements are important factors in the decision to be unbanked. However, several studies show that when fees are constrained, banks find low-balance accounts unprofitable, so access to bank accounts can actually decline."
#Fintech#FinancialInclusion#CBDC#DFC
·clevelandfed.org·
Unbanked in America: A Review of the Literature
HKMA announces competition to promote CBDCs
HKMA announces competition to promote CBDCs
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), has added a central bank digital currency (CBDC) section to the annual Global Fast Track business competition to encourage research into the use cases of digital currencies. Companies are invited invited to pitch business plans relating to the adoption, programmability, interoperability, privacy, cybersecurity, foreign exchange and liquidity management, and offline payments of CBDCs. Shortlisted applicants will then enter a pitching session exclusive for the track and compete for three awards. All qualified candidates may also have the opportunities to work with the HKMA on research projects and pilots to foster the future growth of the CBDC ecosystem. https://www.hkma.gov.hk/eng/news-and-media/press-releases/2022/08/20220810-4/
#Fintech#CBDC#Asia#DFC
·forkast.news·
HKMA announces competition to promote CBDCs