Japan should intensify its engagement with cryptocurrency exchanges and financial institutions to be sure that its plan on issuing a digital yen will not crowd out the private sector, a member of Japan’s House of Representatives, Hideki Murai, told Reuters.
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Murai claims Japan should seek to "maximize the potential a central bank digital currency (CBDC) can offer." He also highlights the central bank's new product should not harm private business.
"It is important for private companies to understand what CBDC means to them, while policymakers must have a deeper understanding on what the private sector is doing," Murai added.
At the same time, a group of over thirty Japanese companies has already announced its support for the practical use case of the digital yen in 2021. The group, including Japan’s three largest financial institutions with brokerages, telecommunication firms, utilities and retailers, will test the use of CBDC on a single settlement platform.
Hiromi Yamaoka, a former Bank of Japan executive, says while Japan has numerous digital platforms, none of which "are big enough to beat cash payments." However, Hiromi Yamaoka, a former Bank of Japan (BOJ) executive, thinks Japan will not launch its own digital currency within the next few months. Yamaoka believes that Japan will likely need "several years" before it can issue its own digital currency.
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