I’m continuing my break from blow-by-blow reporting of fintech developments, and focusing on cleaning up central bank digital currency (CBDC) databases. Yesterday, I mused over CBDCness of Cambodia’s project Bakong, which remains up in the air as I wait some concrete evidence that the National Bank of Cambodia guarantees individual customer holding. Today, I’m doing some backfilling on the research projects being run by two African currency union monetary authorities. One is an update of CBDC work of the Banque des Etats de l’Afrique Centrale (BEAC) which has been in my database for some time but without any updates since 2022, and that old update wasn’t from an official source. The second one is one I missed completely; the Banque Centrale des Etats de L’Afrique de L’Ouest (BCEA) CBDC research that started in 2023.

BEAC Launches Discussions on the Creation of a Central Bank Digital Currency (Droit Medias Finance)

[September 2023] The Banque des Etats de l’Afrique Centrale (BEAC) is exploring issuing a CBDC for its six member countries (Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo). On September 13, 2023, Governor Abbas Mahamat Tolli, signed Decision No. 144/GR/2023 to establish a working group to monitor and implement the work related to this project, in close collaboration with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The BEAC had also published a research paper in 2022 on the topic (“are CBDCs a response to cryptocurrencies”). [Read more at Droit Medias Finance]

Oversight of the Issuance of Central Bank Digital Currencies (BCEAO)

[July 2023] The Banque Centrale des Etats de L’Afrique de L’Ouest (BCEAO) launched a research project, under the aegis of its FinTech Committee, to assess the utility of issuing central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the West African Monetary Union (WAMU) region (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo). The mandate of the project group is to identify the objectives, challenges, and risks related to the CBDC issuance within WAMU, conduct a feasibility study, including the identification of use cases, prerequisites, key success factors, risk control mechanisms, and design options for CBDCs, assess the potential impact of CBDCs on the roles and activities of the BCEAO, and review potential impact on credit institutions, microfinance institutions, other financial ecosystem players, and financial inclusion. [Read more in the BCEAO 2023 Annual Report]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

The CB+DC Conference (Nassau, Bahamas, September 9-11) is a premier gathering centered on CBDCs, tokenized assets, and stablecoins. It provides a forum for central bankers, commercial bankers, technology innovators, policymakers, and academics to explore the latest advancements in digital currency, engage with experts and peers, and discuss the future of digital currency. [Register here but before you do, email me at john@kiffmeister.com for a 15% discount]

And just a reminder that I produce a monthly digest of central bank digital currency (CBDC) developments exclusively for the official sector. So (only) if you work at a central bank, ministry of finance or international financial institution (e.g., the BIS, IMF, OECD, World Bank) and 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 john@kiffmeister.com.