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Driving Financial Inclusion Through CBDCs: A Methodology for Implementation
Driving Financial Inclusion Through CBDCs: A Methodology for Implementation
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) published a five-stage methodology for implementing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) to advance financial inclusion in emerging economies. The methodology progresses through: (1) understanding financial inclusion barriers and user needs, (2) CBDC preparation including cost-benefit analysis and stakeholder coordination, (3) user-centric design and prototyping with emphasis on privacy protection and accessibility, (4) piloting to test assumptions and gather feedback, and (5) full implementation with ongoing monitoring and capacity building. The paper emphasizes that retail CBDCs, when properly designed with features like offline functionality and simplified identification requirements, can address persistent barriers such as high transaction costs, limited documentation, and poor connectivity that exclude underserved populations from traditional financial services. However, the authors stress that CBDCs should be viewed as one component of broader Digital Public Infrastructure rather than standalone solutions, and successful implementation requires robust stakeholder engagement, regulatory frameworks, and continuous adaptation to ensure these digital currencies effectively serve vulnerable populations while maintaining security and sustainability.
#CBDC#FinancialInclusion#Fintech#UnitedNations#DFC
·undp.org·
Driving Financial Inclusion Through CBDCs: A Methodology for Implementation
A Macroeconomic Model of Remunerated Central Bank Digital Currency
A Macroeconomic Model of Remunerated Central Bank Digital Currency
The U.S. National Bureau of Research (NBER) published a paper that develops a calibrated New Keynesian DSGE model featuring monopolistic banks to assess the macroeconomic impact of introducing a remunerated central bank digital currency (CBDC). The analysis shows that households gain from enhanced liquidity services and higher deposit interest rates due to reduced bank market power, while banks experience lower profits and lending volumes. Exploring economies across different interest rate regimes, the authors identify significant welfare improvements from remunerated CBDC adoption, especially in economies with high interest rates where banks have substantial market power in deposit markets. They propose a practical CBDC interest-rate setting rule—setting it as the greater of zero and the policy rate minus one percentage point—which closely approximates the optimal rate found in their model.
#NBER#CBDC#Fintech#FinancialStability#DFC
·nber.org·
A Macroeconomic Model of Remunerated Central Bank Digital Currency
A Theory Model of Digital Currency with Asymmetric Privacy
A Theory Model of Digital Currency with Asymmetric Privacy
This paper by McGill University's Katrin Tinn proposes an "asymmetric privacy" design for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) to resolve the trade-off between consumer privacy and regulatory efficiency. Traditional payment systems face a dilemma: fully private systems (like cash) protect privacy but create costly auditing problems for taxation and financing, while transparent digital systems enable efficient oversight but cause privacy concerns that distort consumer behavior. The proposed "P-Hybrid CBDC" solution makes consumer spending private (protecting money senders) while keeping firm revenues publicly observable (revealing money receivers), implementable through technologies like Zero-Knowledge proofs or anonymized cards. The theoretical model shows this asymmetric design achieves optimal outcomes by enabling efficient financial contracting and tax collection while minimizing privacy-related market distortions, with welfare benefits increasing at scale. Central banks are well-positioned to implement such systems that maximize utility across all stakeholders while maintaining compliance and privacy.
#CBDC#Privacy#Fintech#FinancialIntegrity
·papers.ssrn.com·
A Theory Model of Digital Currency with Asymmetric Privacy
Crunchfish provides a high-level description of its modular, packet-switched, layer-2 approach to payments
Crunchfish provides a high-level description of its modular, packet-switched, layer-2 approach to payments
Crunchfish outlined its Digital Cash solution that uses a modular, packet-switched layer-2 (L2) architecture to enhance existing layer-1 payment systems. The company's approach augments any underlying L1 payment system by enabling multiple design objectives including resilience, privacy, scalability, and interoperability through off-chain processing while maintaining reconciliation and settlement on the underlying L1 system. The solution addresses vulnerabilities in traditional online payment systems by providing load balancing and congestion avoidance during peak usage, enables new offline payment use cases, and maintains a modular design that separates wallet, terminal, and gateway components for flexibility and healthy ecosystem competition. By integrating packet-switching architecture similar to how the internet revolutionized communication layers, Crunchfish's system ensures survivability and load balancing for high-volume payment networks while offering universal interoperability across devices, geographies, and payment systems.
#Crunchfish#Fintech#Payments#PaymentSystems
·crunchfish.com·
Crunchfish provides a high-level description of its modular, packet-switched, layer-2 approach to payments
ECB Commits to DLT Settlement Plans with Dual-Track Strategy
ECB Commits to DLT Settlement Plans with Dual-Track Strategy
The European Central Bank (ECB) will follow a dual-track strategy to enable distributed ledger technology (DLT) transaction settlement using central bank money. The "Pontes" track is a short-term solution that will pilot connections between DLT platforms and the Trans-European Automated Real-time Gross Settlement Express Transfer (TARGET) platform by the end of Q3 2026. "Appia" is a long-term approach focused on creating innovative, integrated financial ecosystems, like the "full DLT" solutions tested by the Banque d France" in which settlements were completed using on-chain "exploratory cash tokens" (i.e., wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC)). This decision builds on the Eurosystem's 2024 exploratory work involving 64 participants conducting over 50 DLT trials and experiments, the results of which were published along with the announcement of the dual-track strategy. https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pubbydate/2025/html/ecb.exploratoryworknewtechnologies202506.en.html
#DLT#ECB#Eurozone#Settlement#SettlementSystems#Fintech#CBDC#wCBDC#DFC
·ecb.europa.eu·
ECB Commits to DLT Settlement Plans with Dual-Track Strategy
Swiss National Bank Extends and Expands Project Helvetia
Swiss National Bank Extends and Expands Project Helvetia
The Swiss National Bank (SNB) is extending and expanding Project Helvetia, which examines various approaches to settling tokenized assets in central bank money, for a further year and continue the pilot until at least mid-2027. (The project was slated to end a two-year extension on June 2026.) Additionally, the SNB is expanding Project Helvetia to include the settlement of tokenized assets with traditional central bank money through a real time gross settlement (RTGS) link, providing BX Digital with a production environment to test this approach alongside the existing wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) settlement on the SIX Digital Exchange platform. The extension allows for a direct comparison between the two settlement approaches in a production environment to provide further insights into their respective advantages and disadvantages.
#CBDC#Settlement#Switzerland#wCBDC#SettlementSystems#Tokenization#Fintech#DFC
·snb.ch·
Swiss National Bank Extends and Expands Project Helvetia
New Technology and Settlement in Central Bank Money Between Banks
New Technology and Settlement in Central Bank Money Between Banks
Danmarks Nationalbank published a paper that examines how distributed ledger technology (DLT) could transform financial market infrastructure while maintaining the critical role of central bank money in interbank settlements. The paper explains that while DLT platforms offer potential benefits like streamlined capital markets, automated smart contracts, and reduced intermediaries, they currently cannot integrate with central bank money systems, creating risks of market fragmentation and reduced monetary policy effectiveness. To address this challenge, central banks are exploring two main approaches: connecting existing central bank systems to DLT platforms through interoperability solutions, or developing new systems where central bank money and digital assets operate on the same DLT platform. The analysis emphasizes that regardless of technological advances, maintaining central bank money as the primary settlement asset is essential for financial stability, and Denmark will collaborate with the European Central Bank (ECB) through the TARGET Services platform to ensure future settlement infrastructure developments benefit the Danish financial system while preserving the unique safety and liquidity properties of central bank money.
#CBDC#Fintech#Settlement#DLT#SettlementSystems#Denmark#wCBDC#DFC
·nationalbanken.dk·
New Technology and Settlement in Central Bank Money Between Banks
Banco Central de Bolivia Reports Record Use of Crypto-Assets Amidst Dollar Scarcity
Banco Central de Bolivia Reports Record Use of Crypto-Assets Amidst Dollar Scarcity
Banco Central de Bolivia (BCB) reported that crypto-asset (most likely all USDT stablecoin) transactions soared from $46.5 million in the first half of 2024 to $294 million in the same period of 2025. Crypto-assets were outlawed in Bolivia until June 2024. but since the ban was lifted, transaction volumes have reached $430 million across more than 10,000 individual operations. This is occurring amid Bolivia's severe economic crisis, which includes near-zero dollar reserves, 40-year high inflation, fuel shortages, and a currency that has lost half its value on the black market despite an artificially maintained official exchange rate. The central bank noted that these digital payment tools have facilitated access to foreign currency transactions, including remittances and small business payments, benefiting micro and small business owners and families nationwide during the ongoing dollar scarcity crisis.
#Fintech#Bolivia#CBDC#DFC
·bcb.gob.bo·
Banco Central de Bolivia Reports Record Use of Crypto-Assets Amidst Dollar Scarcity
Digital Payment Innovations in Sub-Saharan Africa
Digital Payment Innovations in Sub-Saharan Africa
The IMF published a paper that takes stock of developments and policy issues related to digital payments innovations across sub-Saharan African (SSA) drawing on insights from a recent IMF survey of SSA central banks. The paper highlights the critical role of robust digital infrastructure and promotes a competitive, interoperable ecosystem with active private‑sector participation. Mobile money and fast payment systems (FPS) are encouraged as the cornerstone of financial inclusion. Central bank digital currency (CBDC) is seen as a complementary tool but only justified when clear market failures exist.
#Africa#CBDC#CryptoAssets#FastPayments#Fintech#IMF#MobileMoney#DFC
·imf.org·
Digital Payment Innovations in Sub-Saharan Africa
Driving Financial Inclusion Through Central Bank Digital Currencies
Driving Financial Inclusion Through Central Bank Digital Currencies
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) published a paper that outlines a methodology for the design, testing, and implementation of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) to advance financial inclusion. It suggests design features that reduce identity management requirements in low-risk contexts to remove the need for bank accounts or minimum balances and offer offline functionality to mitigate the impact of physical remoteness. In addition, CBDCs have the potential to address price impediments and make financial services more affordable for the unserved and underserved populations. However, it gives short shrift to alternatives that could achieve the same end goals. For example, a 2023 IMF Fintech Note points out that CBDC is not uniquely equipped to overcome such financial inclusion barriers as low financial literacy, cultural factors, poor digital connectivity infrastructure and low trust in formal financial institutions. Also, other solutions may tackle the barriers to financial inclusion that are not addressed by CBDC, such as regulations to limit fees of existing financial services, policies requiring banks to offer basic deposit accounts without fees or minimum balance requirements, fast payment systems, open banking initiatives and open API standards to support competition and interoperability of existing financial services. https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/fintech-notes/Issues/2023/09/22/Central-Bank-Digital-Currency-s-Role-in-Promoting-Financial-Inclusion-538728
#CBDC#FinancialInclusion#UnitedNations#Fintech#DFC
·undp.org·
Driving Financial Inclusion Through Central Bank Digital Currencies
Stablecoins and Digital Euro: Friends or Foes of European Monetary Policy?
Stablecoins and Digital Euro: Friends or Foes of European Monetary Policy?
The European Parliament ECON Committee published a paper that analyses whether dollar-denominated stablecoins pose risks to European monetary policy and assesses the potential of the digital euro as a countermeasure. It concludes that large-scale adoption of foreign stablecoins in Europe is unlikely due to strong trust in the euro, advanced local payment systems, and regulatory barriers like MiCA. Although stablecoins could theoretically disrupt interest rate transmission, bank lending channels, and exchange rate dynamics, these impacts are minimal under current conditions. The paper argues that the digital euro could offer a credible public alternative to stablecoins, but warns its effectiveness depends on design choices such as holding limits, privacy guarantees, and costs to merchants. Ultimately, while stablecoins currently pose little threat, continuous monitoring is recommended, and the digital euro’s success will hinge on addressing user needs and competitive functionality.
#Fintech#CBDC#DFC#CryptoAssets#Stablecoins#Eurozone
·europarl.europa.eu·
Stablecoins and Digital Euro: Friends or Foes of European Monetary Policy?
On the Programmability and Uniformity of Digital Currencies
On the Programmability and Uniformity of Digital Currencies
The Bank of Canada published a paper that explores how programmability affects the uniformity and social utility of money using a stylized theoretical framework. It shows that programmable digital currencies emerge naturally when users value the ability to commit to future payments, which they find useful privately. However, this programmability can lead to fragmenting money into different forms with varying liquidity, posing public costs when informational frictions impede their use. The authors find that banning programmability could reduce welfare if informational frictions are minor—but may help if commitment frictions are low. Their results imply that programmable currencies could offer greater social benefits in decentralized, permissionless blockchain environments than in centralized systems.
#CBDC#Programmability#Fintech#DFC
·bankofcanada.ca·
On the Programmability and Uniformity of Digital Currencies
Growing Retail Digital Payments: The Value of Interoperability
Growing Retail Digital Payments: The Value of Interoperability
The IMF published a paper that examines the benefits of interoperability in retail digital payment systems, focusing on India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI). It highlights how interoperability allows users to transact seamlessly across different apps, enhancing user choice by enabling them to select preferred apps based on trust, features, or reliability. This freedom fosters competition among providers, incentivizing innovation and quality improvements. The paper presents evidence consistent with this framework using granular UPI payments data. It shows that interoperability has indeed led to higher adoption of digital payments, reduced reliance on cash, and prevented market dominance by a single provider. The study also underscores the importance of regulatory vigilance to maintain a competitive and open system.
#Fintech#Interoperability#FastPayments#India#Payments#UPI#IMF#DFC
·imf.org·
Growing Retail Digital Payments: The Value of Interoperability
Bank of Russia Sets Digital Ruble Deadline for Mass Adoption
Bank of Russia Sets Digital Ruble Deadline for Mass Adoption
The Bank of Russia submitted a phased rollout plan to the State Duma requiring banks and merchants to comply with digital ruble regulations starting September 1, 2026. More specifically, merchants that are clients of the largest banks and whose revenue for the previous year exceeds 120 million rubles will have to enable payments for goods and services in digital rubles. Universal license banks and their merchant clients with annual turnover above 30 million rubles must integrate digital ruble systems by September 1, 2027. All remaining banks and sellers—excluding those with revenue below 5 million rubles—must follow suit by September 1, 2028. The digital ruble will operate via a universal QR code system powered by the National Payment Card System. (Passed July 15, 2025: https://tass.ru/ekonomika/24520097)
#CBDC#Fintech#Russia#DFC
·tass.com·
Bank of Russia Sets Digital Ruble Deadline for Mass Adoption
Bank of England / BIS Innovation Hub DLT Innovation Challenge (BoE)
Bank of England / BIS Innovation Hub DLT Innovation Challenge (BoE)
In collaboration with the Bank for International Settlements Innovation Hub (BISIH), the Bank of England (BoE) has launched the DLT Innovation Challenge to engage with the private sector to better understand the implications of incorporating distributed ledger technology (DLT) into wholesale central bank settlement, and demonstrate how to securely transact and settle central bank money on an external ledger that is not controlled by the Bank. In particular, it will explore environments where trust is not inherent—where participants must rely on mechanisms other than central bank control of the ledger to ensure security, finality, and integrity. This framing allows us to test how trust can be established in decentralized or externally governed infrastructures, and to draw insights that may inform the wider wholesale experimentation program.
#BIS#DLT#Fintech#Settlement#United Kingdom#DFC#CBDC#wCBDC#UnitedKingdom
·bankofengland.co.uk·
Bank of England / BIS Innovation Hub DLT Innovation Challenge (BoE)
European Commission Consumer Survey: Offline transactions
European Commission Consumer Survey: Offline transactions
The European Commission (EC) has launched a study to assess existing technology and technology preferences for offline electronic proximity transactions. The study has three objectives: (1) conduct a market analysis and forecast future trends for offline payments; (2) perform a technology assessment of currently available solutions and explore future innovation scenarios and; (3) identify barriers to innovation. The study is kicking off with a survey conducted by Bearing Point to seek opinions from a consumer perspective to help understand current end user preferences on electronic payments in terms of devices, value transfer technologies but also possible hurdles that may serve as barriers to adoption of potentially innovative payment solutions.
#Offline#Payments#CBDC#Eurozone#Fintech#DFC
·ec.europa.eu·
European Commission Consumer Survey: Offline transactions
CBDC’s Design Implications for Financial Stability
CBDC’s Design Implications for Financial Stability
Banco Central del Uruguay (BCU) published a paper that investigates the financial stability implications of introducing a central bank digital currency (CBDC). It addresses concerns about "slow" disintermediation (where CBDC crowds out bank deposits) and "fast" disintermediation (where CBDC facilitates digital bank runs). The authors find that a simple, non-interest-bearing CBDC, designed as a digital equivalent of cash, does not inherently cause disintermediation, as it primarily substitutes physical cash for transactions. Additionally, they demonstrate that a well-implemented emergency liquidity assistance (ELA) policy, enabled by real-time CBDC transactions, can prevent bank runs by providing timely liquidity to illiquid banks, thereby eliminating the conditions for equilibrium bank runs. The study concludes that a properly designed CBDC can enhance financial stability in a cashless economy by mitigating both forms of disintermediation while maintaining trust in the central bank and the banking system. [Read more at the BCU]
#Fintech#CBDC#Uruguay#FinancialStability#DFC
·bcu.gub.uy·
CBDC’s Design Implications for Financial Stability
So Far, Central Bank Digital Currencies Have Failed
So Far, Central Bank Digital Currencies Have Failed
Kevin Dowd posted a paper that examines the global implementation of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and concludes that, to date, all such initiatives have been unsuccessful in improving the well-being of the population. The paper highlights two abandoned CBDC experiments in Finland and Ecuador, noting their low public adoption rates and lack of tangible benefits compared to existing alternatives. It also analyzes ongoing CBDC programs in the Bahamas, the East Caribbean Currency Union, Jamaica, China, and Nigeria, categorizing them as "abandoned experiments, embarrassing flops and monumental exercises in policymaker hubris". The author argues that public demand for CBDCs has been consistently low in cases where data is available, suggesting that central banks are not adept at retail-facing activities and cannot effectively compete with private payment providers. The Nigerian e-Naira is presented as a "major disaster," where a forced cashless policy aimed at promoting the CBDC led to widespread economic disruption and public suffering, ultimately failing to increase e-Naira adoption.
#CBDC#Fintech#DFC
·onlinelibrary.wiley.com·
So Far, Central Bank Digital Currencies Have Failed
Retail Central Bank Digital Currency: A Review and Assessment
Retail Central Bank Digital Currency: A Review and Assessment
SUERF published a paper by David Llewellyn, Charles Goodhart and Alistair Milne that critically examines the potential benefits, costs, and risks of introducing a retail central bank digital currency (CBDC). The authors argue that while proponents highlight advantages such as maintaining trust in the monetary system, enhancing competition, and promoting financial inclusion, these benefits may not outweigh the drawbacks or be uniquely addressed by a CBDC. The authors highlight risks like disintermediation of banks, financial instability, cybersecurity threats, and privacy concerns. Plus, retail CBDC could struggle to become a significant payments mechanism with the necessary critical mass unless it can offer additional or better payments mechanisms than are already available with commercial bank money and the wide range of other payment mechanisms. The paper emphasizes the need for a thorough cost-benefit analysis.
#CBDC#SUERF#Fintech
·suerf.org·
Retail Central Bank Digital Currency: A Review and Assessment
A Retail CBDC Design for Basic Payments: Feasibility Study
A Retail CBDC Design for Basic Payments: Feasibility Study
The Bank of Canada (BOC) published a paper that explores the technical architecture for a retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) tailored for basic payments. The authors analyze a micro-partitioned system based on the UTXO (unspent transaction output) funds model, using a two-tiered model based on OpenCBDC 2PC as a representative design. It found that the baseline design handles over 250,000 transactions per second (TPS), though privacy-preserving variants (e.g., Pedersen commitments) reduce performance. Privacy is enhanced by minimizing central bank visibility into user data, with optional anonymity for users. Challenges include integrating with existing retail payment systems, auditing large-scale monetary supplies, and ensuring core system resilience. The study concludes that such architectures are feasible for basic payments but highlights areas needing further research, such as compliance mechanisms and recovery protocols for system outages.
#CBDC#Canada#Fintech#DFC
·bankofcanada.ca·
A Retail CBDC Design for Basic Payments: Feasibility Study
CBDC and Bank Stability: Does Monetary Policy Play a Moderating Role?
CBDC and Bank Stability: Does Monetary Policy Play a Moderating Role?
The Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) published a paper that examines the impact of central bank digital currency (CBDC) adoption on bank stability in India and China, using a "benefit-of-the-doubt" approach to construct a multidimensional Bank Stability Index (BSI). The index is based on 2013-2022 data from 74 banks across five dimensions; capital adequacy, profitability, asset quality, liquidity, and efficiency. The study finds that CBDC adoption positively affects bank stability, with a stronger impact in India compared to China. The study also reveals a negative moderating role of monetary policy, suggesting that the stabilizing effect of CBDC is enhanced during accommodative monetary policy stances, and diminished when policy is tight. The research concludes that careful management of CBDC alongside appropriate monetary policy can enhance overall financial stability.
#CBDC#Fintech#Financial Stability#DFC
·adb.org·
CBDC and Bank Stability: Does Monetary Policy Play a Moderating Role?
Currency Wars in the Digital Age: CBDCs, Stablecoins and Mr Trump
Currency Wars in the Digital Age: CBDCs, Stablecoins and Mr Trump
Ousmène Jacques Mandeng published an essay that discusses the evolving landscape of international payments in the digital age, focusing on the potential shift from dollar dominance to a more diversified system driven by digital currencies like CBDCs, stablecoins, and tokenized deposits. It highlights how blockchain technology can enhance payment efficiency, reduce settlement risks, and lower barriers for smaller currencies to participate in global transactions. The author notes geopolitical tensions, such as U.S. resistance to BRICS currency initiatives, and argues that digital monies could reshape the international monetary system by altering the relative attractiveness of currencies. The essay concludes that blockchain-enabled financial infrastructures may foster currency competition, aligning with Friedrich Hayek's vision of stability through diversification, despite political challenges.
#Fintech#CBDC#CryptoAssets#Stablecoins#DFC
·economicsadvisory.com·
Currency Wars in the Digital Age: CBDCs, Stablecoins and Mr Trump
PwC study reveals that digital euro costs are running into billions
PwC study reveals that digital euro costs are running into billions
A study from PwC conducted on behalf of the European Banking Federation, the European Association of Co-operative Banks (EACB), and the European Savings and Retail Banking Group shows that the introduction of the digital euro could cost up to €30 billion for banks in the eurozone, even though – as currently conceived – it would not offer any recognizable added value for either consumers or businesses. The umbrella organizations of the Savings Banks Finance Group and the Volksbanken Raiffeisenbanken Cooperative Financial Network are therefore calling for closer collaboration with private initiatives in the European financial sector. https://www.pwc.de/de/finanzdienstleistungen/pwc-digital-euro-cost-study-2025.pdf
#CBDC#Eurozone#Fintech#DFC
·bvr.de·
PwC study reveals that digital euro costs are running into billions
Drex will have a third phase focusing on improving credit quality
Drex will have a third phase focusing on improving credit quality
Banco Central do Brasil Executive Secretary Rogerio Antonio Lucca reportedly said that the Drex central bank digital currency (CBDC) proof-of-concept will have a third phase. He said the focus should be on creating collateral tokenization solutions so that banks can increase access to credit for their customers and reduce fees.
#Brazil#CBDC#Tokenization#Fintech#DFC
·valor.globo.com·
Drex will have a third phase focusing on improving credit quality
Japan's CBDC pilot continues but launch remains uncertain
Japan's CBDC pilot continues but launch remains uncertain
Japan’s central bank is continuing its pilot program for a central bank digital currency (CBDC), known as the digital yen, but has no immediate plans to launch it, primarily due to the country’s ongoing high cash usage. The Bank of Japan’s recent progress report, discussed at a June 2 meeting, highlighted that seven working groups involving 64 private companies are exploring both technical and theoretical aspects of CBDC development, including integration with emerging technologies like distributed ledger technology (DLT). The pilot found that deploying a CBDC on a public blockchain is currently unfeasible due to scalability, privacy, and governance issues, though future possibilities such as layer 2 blockchains and permissioned blockchains for settling security token transactions are being considered. The research also compared APIs and webhooks for system communication, favoring webhooks for real-time updates and reduced system strain. While there are no immediate plans to issue a digital yen, the central bank will continue its research, leaving the door open for future developments.
#CBDC#Japan#Fintech#DFC
·coingeek.com·
Japan's CBDC pilot continues but launch remains uncertain
Bank of Japan Digital Yen Project Update
Bank of Japan Digital Yen Project Update
The Bank of Japan (BoJ) published a progress report on its digital yen program, which involves seven working groups and 64 private companies through its central bank digital currency (CBDC) Forum. Unfortunately, only the Japanese version is currently available. The working groups are tackling different aspects of digital currency development through both technical implementation and theoretical research. https://www.boj.or.jp/paym/digital/dig250604a.pdf https://www.boj.or.jp/paym/digital/dig250523a.pdf https://www.boj.or.jp/paym/digital/dig250523b.pdf
#CBDC#Japan#Fintech#DFC
·ledgerinsights.com·
Bank of Japan Digital Yen Project Update
Bolivian central bank aims to present a study on the viability of a CBDC
Bolivian central bank aims to present a study on the viability of a CBDC
At the Eighteenth Meeting of Bolivian Economists (18EEB) "Advances and Challenges of the Digital Economy" Banco Central de Bolivia (BCB) President Edwin Rojas Ulo announced that the central bank is conducting a feasibility study of the possibility of issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The project will begin with the publication of an "Initial Diagnosis" consultative paper in August 2025. The President made it clear that the intent is not seek to replace cash or abruptly disrupt the national financial structure, but to "pave the way for responsible, inclusive, and sustainable innovation that strengthens our payment system and extends the benefits of digital money to the entire population."
#Fintech#CBDC#Bolivia#DFC
·bcb.gob.bo·
Bolivian central bank aims to present a study on the viability of a CBDC
The Bank of Japan's Approach to General Purpose CBDC
The Bank of Japan's Approach to General Purpose CBDC
The Bank of Japan (BoJ) published the English version of the chapter in its 2024 Payment and Settlement Report on its approach to general-purpose central bank digital currency (CBDC). The BoJ is engaging with various stakeholders through the CBDC Forum and thematic working groups to discuss critical aspects such as system connections, overlay services, KYC/AML/CFT, new technologies, user interfaces, and interoperability with other payment instruments. The BoJ has progressed through multiple phases of experimentation since 2021, including two proof of concept phases that tested basic CBDC functions and ledger designs, followed since April 2023 by end-to-end system testing with private sector participation through the CBDC Forum. Key principles guiding the approach include maintaining a two-tiered system with private sector involvement, ensuring horizontal coexistence between CBDC and existing payment instruments (cash, bank deposits, digital money), protecting user privacy through separated system components, and achieving interoperability across different payment methods.
#CBDC#Japan#Fintech
·boj.or.jp·
The Bank of Japan's Approach to General Purpose CBDC
Korea becomes testing ground for CBDC vs stablecoin supremacy battle
Korea becomes testing ground for CBDC vs stablecoin supremacy battle
Bank of Korea (BOK) Governor Rhee Chang-yong reportedly visited the nation's six largest banks to advocate for the central bank's two wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) projects, Project Hangang and Project Agorá, offering to cover a third of the costs for Project Hangang. This initiative coincides with these banks' plans to launch a joint stablecoin, highlighting a competitive landscape between public and private digital currencies. The BOK's strategy includes leveraging permissioned blockchains for tokenized deposits, contrasting with the banks' preference for permissionless blockchain-based stablecoins. https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/business/20250527/bok-head-rhee-chang-yong-underscores-private-sector-cooperation-in-central-bank-led-digital-currency-project
#CBDC#CryptoAssets#Korea#Stablecoins#Fintech#wCBDC#DFC
·ledgerinsights.com·
Korea becomes testing ground for CBDC vs stablecoin supremacy battle
Reserve Bank of India CBDC Pilots Update
Reserve Bank of India CBDC Pilots Update

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) outlined its 2025–26 plans for its digital rupee central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilots in its 2024-25 Annual Report. In 2024-25 the pilots tested offline and programmable functionalities, including use cases such as direct benefit transfers, agricultural loans, and targeted employee allowances. These pilots have been extended to public schemes, like direct benefit transfers to farmers against generation of carbon credits and loans to tenant farmers in select locations. Looking ahead, discussions are ongoing with central and state agencies to scale programmable CBDC for defined-use fund transfers. Also, the RBI plans to explore both bilateral and multilateral cross-border CBDC pilots, especially given India’s role as a leading remittance recipient. The upcoming agenda also includes testing new designs, technologies, and use cases such as asset tokenization.

#Fintech#CBDC#India#DFC
·rbidocs.rbi.org.in·
Reserve Bank of India CBDC Pilots Update