Asian countries, including China, Hong Kong, and Thailand, are all set to roll out national digital currencies as a mode of payment and to better track the money flow. The coming decade is likely to be the year of central bank-issued digital currencies.
PBOC aims to eliminate the use of notes and coins.
The People’s Bank of China aims to replace cash use with the national digital currency. Even though the central bank has said that they will provide their users with “controlled” anonymity, but the Chinese government is known for mass surveilling its citizens. The CBDC gives the government massive power to keep an eye on the money flow in the country. The officials from the PBOC have said that for now, they will limit the use of digital token to domestic retail payments.
Most of the central banks are researching digital currencies.
About 70% of the world’s 63 central banks surveyed by the Bank of International Settlement in 2018 were engaged in research work on their own digital currencies. The trend has only increased since then. Countries like Russia and the USA are also contemplating the idea of issuing CBDC. CBDC is a great tool for authorities to better track transactions of citizens.
