The central bank of the Philippines is looking at the feasibility of issuing its own digital currency. According to the Bloomberg report, the central bank has created a committee to study digital currencies and its policy implications. Governor Benjamin Diokno said the central bank would look at the committee’s findings before making any decision. The committee is expected to announce the initial results of the study next month. Several other central banks across countries are also working on centralized digital currencies.
The central bank of Phillippines is experimenting with CBDC.
While the prevalence of digital currencies is increasing, Governor Benjamin Diokno said he doesn’t see the demand for fiat currency fading away yet in the Philippines. “Cryptocurrency for us has always been beyond the asset itself but more on the blockchain technology that underpins it,” the governor added. The governor further lauded a blockchain initiative by the Philippine Bureau of the Treasury. In association with the Union Bank of the Philippines and Philippine Digital Asset Exchange, the Bureau launched a blockchain-based app for retail bond distribution. The app, called Bonds.PH claims to make bond investing easier.
Central banks continue to experiment with CBDCs.
Central banks around the world are currently experimenting with central bank digital currencies. Several central banks have made impressive progress in this field while some have are starting out. The People’s Bank of China is all set to become the world’s first major central bank to issue a digital currency. Currently, the PBoC is testing its national digital currency dubbed as DC/EP (Digital Currency Electronic Payment) in several cities across the country.
Earlier, the Bank for International Settlements released a report saying that the ongoing global pandemic has prompted central banks to accelerate their research involving CBDCs as people avoid transactions in physical money.
