Chart of the Week: The Digital Divide in Asia | IMF
While the Internet has reached most people in Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, and Singapore, more than 70 percent of people in Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao P.D.R., and Myanmar remain offline and can’t fully participate in the digital economy. High-speed broadband is even more scarce. ASEAN trails China, Japan, and Korea. Singapore is the sole exception.
Goldman Sachs-backed Circle launches USDC stablecoin crypto - Business Insider
Circle, the crypto company backed by Goldman Sachs, on Wednesday became the first official issuer of a new cryptocurrency pegged to the dollar. Circle will allow people to "tokenize" dollars by depositing them through an online gateway. Depositors will be given USDC — US dollar coins — in exchange.
Ukrainian National Bank Considering Launching State Digital Currency Tied to Local Fiat | Coin Telegraph
The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) is considering launching a state-owned digital currency based on blockchain, local news outlet Vesti Ukraine reported Tuesday, September 25.
Shining light on The State of Stablecoins | Blockchain
The State of Stablecoins report takes a detailed look for the first time at the strengths, trade-offs and concerns associated with all 57 active stablecoins, including both live and pre-launch projects, using a new data set that includes previously non-public information.
Now That The HKMA Faster Payment System is Live, What Does it Mean For Hong Kong? - Fintech Hong Kong
In an effort to push Hong Kong towards a cashless society, the HKMA Faster Payment System was launched earlier this month. To date 21 banks and 10 digital wallet have signed up for the system which includes well known names likes of Citibank, Hang Seng Bank, DBS, TNG Wallet, Alipay, WeChat Pay and Octopus.
"It seems to me that the old curse of a full-reserve bank, the necessity that it charge customers a recurring fee to recoup its high costs, has finally been reversed. In addition to providing a full range of transactional services, a full-reserve bank should finally (in theory, at least) be able to provide depositors with interest. "
Marshall Islands Goes Ahead with State-Backed Crypto Plans Despite IMF Warning • Live Bitcoin News
The Pacific country of the Marshall Islands will be proceeding with its previously reported plan of launching its own virtual currency, without the blessing of the International Monetary Fund.
"In common with a bank, Monzo does provide demand deposits (it previously offered prepaid cards). Last year, it began offering customers current accounts and, according to its reports as of the end of February, had £71.3m of deposits on the liabilities side of its balance sheet. The assets side of the balance sheet, however, tells a very different story. Monzo’s deposits are held in overnight accounts at the Bank of England. In fact, as of its latest report, Monzo held £97m at the Bank of England, much more than the sum of its total deposits. This implies that a large portion of equity funding the company has received is currently sitting at the central bank."
Another Stablecoin: U.K. Exchange Launches GBP-Pegged Cryptocurrency | CCN
The London Block Exchange has announced the launch of a GBP-pegged cryptocurrency stablecoin called LBXPeg. In a statement posted on its website, LBX revealed that the so-called “cryptopound” will be tied to the value of GBP held in an auditable U.K. bank account on a 1:1 basis.
ECB may need to take bigger role to promote instant payments: Mersch | Reuters
Europe needs a wide-reaching, cheap and instant retail payment system to stop overseas competitors taking this market and the European Central Bank should consider taking a bigger role in the field, ECB board member Yves Mersch said on Wednesday.
New Crop of ‘Regulated’ Stablecoins are Trading at a Premium to Tether | CCN
"Now, as these new tokens begin to achieve liquidity on cryptocurrency exchanges, it appears as though the controversy surrounding tether — which heretofore has been the primary USD proxy on exchanges not authorized to list physical fiat currencies — is causing USDT to trade at a discount to its more intensely-regulated counterparts."
If these stablecoins are going to censor transactions, why not just avoid blockchains altogether and create a centralized and speedy alternative — something like, I don’t know, Paypal? Maybe someone can explain to me in the comments how all of this makes sense.
Dubai to Launch Blockchain Payments with State Digital Currency ‘emCash’ | CCN
"The UAE’s first official credit bureau – emCredit – under the Dubai Department of Economic Development is pushing its official blockchain-encrypted state digital currency emCash for wider adoption by rolling out point-of-sale (PoS) devices at government storefronts across Dubai."
"Enabling central banks to issue digital fiat currency, the eCurrency technology powers an instrument that has the same legal tender status as banknotes and coins. Digital fiat currency is secure, transparent, and efficient. The digital payment instrument issued by the Central Bank infuses trust in all digital transactions."
After strangling bitcoin, India may launch its own cryptocurrency — Quartz India
"A panel constituted by India’s finance ministry might soon recommend that the country launch a government-backed cryptocurrency. “We are evaluating the government-backed cryptocurrency and crypto-token,” said a senior government official privy to the discussions of the panel. “And we are looking to develop and encourage our own research and development of blockchain technology,” the official added, referring to the digital infrastructure on which cryptocurrencies are based."
Revolution, Anarchy, and Bitcoin in Ukraine - Bloomberg
In late 2017, Poroshenko’s administration worked with BitFury Group Ltd., a U.S.-based blockchain company, to store government data. In September, Mushak introduced his crypto law in Parliament, and Ukrainian regulators are slowly getting behind the idea of moving cryptocurrencies out of the “gray zone” and into the legal financial world. A representative from the central bank said in a statement that it supports regulation and is exploring the idea of a national blockchain-based currency.
PBoC's Digital Currency Chief Departs to Lead Securities Clearing House - CoinDesk
"The former architect of China's central bank digital currency (CBDC) initiative has left the position to head the country's central securities clearing house. Yao Qian, who founded the Digital Currency Research Lab at the People's Bank of China (PBoC) last year, has now taken up the role of general manager at the China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation (CSDC), according to an update from the firm on Monday."
PBoC Pools More Blockchain Experts in Preparation for CBDC Launch - CoinWire
The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) is currently hiring a number of experts in blockchain technology as part of its initiative to develop a central bank-backed digital currency.
A new analysis on the impact of central bank digital currencies to private banks – Finadium
"A research paper from the St. Louis Federal Reserve investigates how a central bank digital currency would impact private banks, but along the way gets to the heart of a pressing global debate: should individuals have central bank accounts and what does that mean for policy making? This issue keeps coming up in one form or another."
Assessing the Impact of Central Bank Digital Currency on Private Banks- Working Papers - St. Louis Fed
"I investigate the theoretical impact of central bank digital currency (CBDC) on a monopolistic banking sector. The framework combines the Diamond (1965) model of government debt with the Klein (1971) and Monti (1972) model of banking. There are two main results. First, the introduction of interest-bearing CBDC increases financial inclusion, diminishing the demand for physical cash. Second, while interest-bearing CBDC reduces monopoly profit, it need not disintermediate banks in any way. CBDC may, in fact, lead to an expansion of bank deposits if CBDCcompetition compels banks to raise their deposit rates."
Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Downplays Cryptocurrency Plans | CCN
"Masayoshi Amamiya, Bank of Japan’s Deputy Governor, stated on Saturday that it was unclear whether digital currencies could enhance the monetary policies of central banks. He elaborated that the Bank of Japan had no plans whatsoever to issue a cryptocurrency."
Is a Cashless Society Problematic? - Bank of Canada
"The use of bank notes in Canada for payments has declined consistently for some time, and similar trends are evident in other countries. This has led some observers to predict a cashless society in the future. This paper considers the implications of the abandonment of the use of cash in the future. More specifically, we look at a variety of ways in which the emergence of a cashless society could affect key concerns of a central bank, including seigniorage, monetary policy, payments and financial stability considerations. We find that a cashless society would not generally cause material, system-wide problems. There are a few areas, however, where concerns could emerge: the maintenance of both operational reliability and contestability in retail payments, and the provision of a safe store of value in an (extreme) financial crisis. We note policy options to address these potential concerns."
Riksbank says all banks should be ‘obliged’ to continue cash services - Central Banking
Sveriges Riksbank has taken proposals to ensure cash does not disappear from Sweden one step further, by declaring all banks and other credit institutions should be “obliged” to continue to offer cash services.
Central Bank-Issued Digital Currencies: Why Governments May (or May Not) Need Them | Coin Telegraph
"The concept of CBDC, or national cryptocurrencies, has attracted many governments across the world. Some of them have already rolled out their virtual currencies, some keep researching their economical impact, while others — like Japan — have decided to dismiss the idea altogether. Here’s what the concept entails, and why major governments choose to implement or deny it."
New York Fed files to dismiss narrow bank lawsuit - Central Banking
"The Federal Reserve Bank of New York has filed a motion to dismiss The Narrow Bank’s (TNB) lawsuit, claiming that TNB’s case is “unripe” and has no legal ground to stand on. In August, the start-up bank filed a complaint in federal court seeking a judgement and injunction compelling the New York Fed to open a Fed account called a master account."
Next step – a technical solution for the e-krona | Sveriges Riksbank
Sweden’s Riksbank will start a pilot next year to develop a tested and ready e‐krona that could be introduced should the bank wish to do so. The initial focus will be on an e‐krona that constitutes a prepaid value (e-money) without interest and with traceable transactions.
