Bank of Japan CBDC PoC Phase 2 Results
The Bank of Japan (BoJ) published the results of Phase 2 of its central bank digital currency (CBDC) proof-of-concept (PoC) that was conducted between April 2022 and March 2023. Although it is only available in Japanese, Norbert Gehrke wrote a summary of the report in English. The objective of the PoC Phase 2 was to uncover potential technical issues early as they relate to the basic functions covered in Phase 1. Some desirable peripheral functions not covered in Phase 1 were also added. Then, the technical implementation and processing performance was validated. [Download the report at the BoJ and read Norbert Gehrke’s English language summary on Medium]
Uptake of e-CNY remains disappointing
According to Changchun Mu, director of the People’s Bank of China’s Digital Currency Institute, China’s e-CNY CBDC needs to be made more appealing and user friendly in order to satisfy market needs. He was speaking at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Summit on March 22, 2023 and gave a surprisingly frank assessment of the status of the e-CNY pilot project. [Watch the video at the BIS and check out Rosa Giovanna Barresi’s summary and discussion on LinkedIn]
Fed’s Waller says tokenization shows promise, but risks remain
US Federal Reserve Board (Fed) Governor Christopher Waller spoke about the potential benefits and risks of blockchain-based asset tokenization and the related use of smart contracts. In particular, he pointed to the way that smart contract-enabled atomic settlement can mitigate settlement and counterparty credit risks by ensuring that the buyer will not pay if the seller does not deliver; and conversely, that the seller will not deliver if the buyer does not pay. However, smart contracts can have bugs and potential cyber vulnerabilities; and instantaneous settlement raises its own set of risks. [Read more at the Fed]
The shape of things to come: innovation in payments and money
Bank of England (BoE) Deputy Governor Sir Jon Cunliffe spoke about four areas where the tokenization of money is being explored. The first is stablecoins used for payments, the second is the tokenization of commercial bank deposits, the third is the next stage of the BoE’s work on issuing a digital pound and the last is the Bank’s work to ensure to ensure these new forms of money are robust and uniform. [Read the speech at the BoE and check out a discussion on LinkedIn led by Rosa Giovanna Barresi]
Upcoming conferences, webinars and speaking engagements:
- I’ll be moderating a panel on “what happens when the lights go out…different schemes for offline functionality” at the in-person Digital Currency Conference (DCC) in Mexico City on May 18. [Register here]
- I’ll be participating in Currency Research’s in-person Central Bank Payments Conference and Global Payments Summit in Cape Town from June 26 to 30. [Register here and here respectively]
Kiffmeister’s global central bank digital currency monthly monitor
Just a reminder that I produce a monthly digest of central bank digital currency (CBDC) developments exclusively for the official sector. So for any of you out there who work for a central bank, ministry of finance or international financial institution who would like to receive it by email on the first business day of every month, please DM me on LinkedIn or email me at chronicles@kiffmeister.com.
The Sovereign Official Digital Association (SODA) is a technology-agnostic firm offering advisory services at the intersection of central banking, digital finance and the web3 industry, aiming to make public digital money a reality. SODA believes institutions in the existing financial ecosystem should have access to the tools and resources they need to move from discussion to action. SODA offers ‘real life’ use cases to help test digital money and drive adoption as central banks and other public institutions explore the future of a more financially inclusive world powered by interoperable blockchain-based networks. SODA would love you to join us on this journey – please get in touch (chris@sodapublicmoney.org).
Satoshi Capital Advisors is a New York-based, global advisory firm that works with central banks, governments, and the private sector to architect, implement, and operate varying initiatives. Satoshi Capital Advisors’ central bank work revolves around CBDC architecture and implementation, providing advisory services from research phase through to growth phase. Utilizing a product-market fit and technology agnostic approach to CBDC architecture and implementation enables Satoshi Capital Advisors to build tailored solutions, bespoke to local financial system nuances. Satoshi Capital Advisors welcomes requests from central bank officials for virtual and in-person CBDC workshops. [Click here for more information]
WhisperCash offers the first fully offline digital currency platform that has the same properties as physical cash. It can perform secure consecutive offline payments without compromising on security, privacy or accessibility. WhisperCash allows direct person to person offline payments without any server infrastructure or internet connectivity. It comes in various form factors including the self-contained credit card-sized “Pro” that sports an eInk screen and capacitive keyboard, and lasts for two weeks between recharges assuming a few transactions per day. [Click here for more information]