The Bank of Japan (BOJ) announced this Friday that it appointed Kazushige Kamiyama, the central bank’s top economist, to lead the department that is looking into central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). The appointment of the Bank of Japan’s top economist as the head of the unit exploring CBDC appears to be part of the bank’s efforts to keep up with financial innovation and the growing adoption of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. Central banks across countries are exploring central bank digital currencies.
Kamiyama will lead the payments and settlement department of the BOJ.
According to the Reuters report, Seisaku Kameda will succeed in Kamiyama as the central bank’s top economist and head of its statistics department. The top economist will be the head of the payments and settlement department of the BOJ, which has been conducting research into CBDCs in collaboration with other central banks. The Japanese government has been warming up to the idea of having its own national digital currency. As reported earlier, the Japanese government is going to include the consideration of a CBDC in its official economic plan, known as the ‘Honebuto Plan for Economic and Fiscal Revitalization.’
Central banks around the world continue to explore CBDCs.
Central banks across countries are currently exploring the possibilities of central bank digital currencies. Many central banks have made noticeable progress in this area as they approach the final stages of issuing a CBDC. China is set to become the first major nation to issue a national digital currency. The CBDC dubbed as Digital Currency Electronic Payment (DCEP) is currently being tested in many cities. Several economists and experts have claimed that the digital version of yuan could threaten the global dominance of the US dollar. An earlier report by the Bank for International Settlements had said that the ongoing pandemic had amplified the need for central bank digital currencies.
