The President of Germany’s central bank and a policymaker at the European Central Bank, Jens Weidmann, in an interview with German newspaper Handelsblatt, called for European banks to develop a cheaper and faster payment solution to fight Facebook proposed stablecoin Libra.
Jens Weidmann not in favor of a CBDC.
Jens Weidmann said that he does not believe in always calling for the state right away. He further said that in a market economy, it is first up to companies to develop a corresponding offer for customer requests. The ECB official asked first to assess all the cons and pros of a central bank-backed digital currency. Then it can be decided whether it is needed and the risks can be controlled, he added.
ECB plans to establish clear objectives for its digital currency task force this year.
Earlier, ECB President Christine Lagarde said that the central bank should remain ahead of the curve when it comes to stablecoins. Christine has previously been positive about cryptocurrency innovation. She plans to establish clear guidelines for the ECB digital currency task force by mid-2020. Jens Weidmann also informed that the central bank of Germany is also testing blockchain technology to supplement its central, account-based solution, but according to him, it has not produced any result so far.
