The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in a cooperation with the Swiss National Bank (SNB) and the financial infrastructure operator SIX announced the successful completion of a joint experiment of a central bank digital currency (CBDC).
Subscribe to our Telegram channel to stay up to date on the latest crypto and blockchain news.
According to an official press release, the so-called Project Helvetia demonstrated "the feasibility and legal robustness" in a near-live setup. The financial institutions found that a CBDC has "potential advantages when settling digital assets." However, a possible issuance of a digital currency would raise policy and governance hurdles, the BIS says.
Benoît Cœuré, Head of the Bank for International Settlements' Innovation Hub (BISIH), says CBDC's design and implications deserve close study and consideration in case wholesale CBDCs "are to fulfil their potential as a new means of settlement."
"This is only possible via continued deliberations and experimentations among central banks and with other stakeholders, such as market supervisors and the private sector," Cœuré added.
The BIS is planning to continue its work on researching CBDCs to better understand the practical issues and policy implications. Different design choices that allow for trade-offs between risks and benefits need to be explored, the international financial institution emphasized.
Earlier in November 2020, Oki Matsumoto, Monex Group's Chairman and CEO, expressed an opinion that digital currencies issued by central banks will speed up the adoption of cryptocurrencies as digital economy will simplify the process of converting between legal tender and cryptocurrencies.
Access more than 50 of the world's financial markets directly from your EXANTE account – including NASDAQ, London Stock Exchange and Tokyo Stock Exchange.