Category: FastPayments

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20240606)

~ kiffmeister

How tokenization of real-world assets will facilitate efficient markets

The U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee (FSC) hosted a hearing on asset tokenization. All of the witnesses agreed that tokenization can help increase liquidity, enhance price discovery, increase transparency, increase access, enable fractional ownership, among other things. Depending on the nature of a specific asset, however, existing laws or regulations may create uncertainty regarding a person’s interest or property rights associated with a tokenized asset. Also, there was some aversion expressed towards tokenization’s use of public permissionless blockchains. In any case, some of the witness’s written testimonies are well worth reading. [Read more at the FSC]

Survey on crypto-assets in Norway

Norges Bank published the results of a survey, conducted in January and February 2024, on the Norwegian population’s awareness, ownership and use of crypto-assets. 96% of the Norwegian population aged 16 and over are aware of crypto-assets. 15% of the population have owned or own crypto-assets, and 11% of the population owned crypto-assets at the time of the survey. 73% of those who know about crypto-assets rate their own knowledge of crypto-assets as “very little” or “quite little”. 2 out of 3 current crypto-asset owners have 5% or less of their financial savings in crypto-assets. [Read more at Norges Bank]

Peru to implement a UPI-like retail payment platform

Banco Central de Reserva del Perú (BCRP), in collaboration with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), signed an agreement with India’s National Payments Corporation to implement a retail payments platform in Peru, similar India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) platform. UPI is a real-time payment platform, available 24/7, that allows users to link multiple bank accounts in their mobile applications and pay through cell phone number, QR codes and virtual payment addresses. [Read more at the BCRP]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

  • CBDC Conference, Istanbul, September 10-12. The conference will offer representatives of central banks, commercial banks, technology providers, policy makers and academics the perfect platform to learn about the latest CBDC developments, exchange ideas with experts and peers. [Find out more and register here][Central bank delegates may be eligible for free registration (email registration@cbdc-conference.com to find out more)]
  • Digital Currency Conference, London, September 23-24. The conference will bring together policymakers, regulators, and technology and innovation experts to network and discuss all aspects of digital currencies. And enter the KiffmeisterDCC code at registration to get a 20% discount! [Find out more and register here]

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.

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20240520)

~ kiffmeister

Impact of Retail CBDC on Digital Payments and Bank Deposits: Evidence from India

The U.S. National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) published an empirical analysis utilizing detailed transaction data from India’s digital rupee pilot to explore the dynamics between central bank digital currency (CBDC) and existing digital payment methods, as well as the implications of increased CBDC usage on traditional bank deposits. It found that the April 2023 introduction of merchant fees on certain Unified Payments Interface (UPI) person-to-merchant (P2M) payments catalyzed a substitution effect into digital rupees. Furthermore, it found that an uptick in CBDC usage was associated with a notable decline in bank, cash, and savings deposits. [Read more at the NBER]

Nothing to hide? Gender and age differences in the willingness to share data

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) published a paper that, based on a representative survey of about 1,300 US consumers, found that women are less willing than men to share their financial transaction data in exchange for better offers on financial services. Differences in attitudes across groups, such as the willingness to take financial risks, concerns that data will become publicly available and concerns around personal safety, explain part of these gaps. The analysis also shows that older individuals are also less willing to share their data, perhaps as a matter of principle. This could result in biased samples and outcomes that are not in the interest of the underrepresented groups, e.g. in lending decisions, financial advice, and health applications. [Read more at the BIS]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

  • CBDC Conference, Istanbul, September 10-12. The conference will offer representatives of central banks, commercial banks, technology providers, policy makers and academics the perfect platform to learn about the latest CBDC developments, exchange ideas with experts and peers. [Find out more and register here][Central bank delegates may be eligible for free registration (email registration@cbdc-conference.com to find out more)]
  • Digital Currency Conference, London, September 23-24. The conference will bring together policymakers, regulators, and technology and innovation experts to network and discuss all aspects of digital currencies. And enter the KiffmeisterDCC code at registration to get a 20% discount! [Find out more and register here]

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.

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20240503)

~ kiffmeister

Bank of Namibia launches instant payment project

Bank of Namibia (BON) launched its Instant Payment Project, with a targeted launch year of 2025. It will focus on enhancing financial services in rural areas and the informal sector, thereby reducing cash dependency, and increasing transactional efficiency. Designed for inclusivity, the platform will be accessible on any device, including non-smartphones, ensuring that everyone can use it effortlessly. According to Finextra, BON will partner with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the firm behind India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI). [Read more at BON]

Why DeFi lending? Evidence from Aave V2

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) published a paper that uses granular, transaction-level data from Aave, a leading player in the distributed finance (DeFi) lending market, to study investor motivations. The theoretical and empirical findings reveal that the search for yield predominantly drives liquidity provision in DeFi lending pools, whereas borrowing activity is mainly influenced by speculative and, to some extent, governance motives. Both retail- and large investors seek potential high returns through market movements and price speculation, however the latter engage in DeFi borrowing relatively more than the former also to influence protocol decisions and accrue more significant governance rights. [Read more at the BIS]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

  • CBDC Conference, Istanbul, September 10-12. The conference will offer representatives of central banks, commercial banks, technology providers, policy makers and academics the perfect platform to learn about the latest CBDC developments, exchange ideas with experts and peers. [Find out more and register here]
  • Digital Currency Conference, London, September 23-24. The conference will bring together policymakers, regulators, and technology and innovation experts to network and discuss all aspects of digital currencies. And enter the KiffmeisterDCC code at registration to get a 20% discount! [Find out more and register here]

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.

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20240305)*

~ kiffmeister

The CBDCTracker.org database has been updated, now counting a total of 108 jurisdictions and/or currency unions engaged in central bank digital currency (CBDC) research. Note that the Euro area, the Eastern Caribbean Economic and Currency Union and Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa are currency unions and only count as one. For more information, please read Atakan Kavuklu’s summary of February developments [here] and visit the CBDCTracker.org website.

Russian CBDC status update: 25,000 transactions so far

The Bank of Russia provided an update on the digital ruble pilot that started in August 2023 with a dozen banks, 600 end users and 30 merchants across 11 cities. So far there have been 19,000 for person-to-person and 6,000 person-to-business payments, and 3,500 involved smart contracts. The central bank plans to further expand the circle of users and add 19 more banks, add dynamic QR codes, and expand the use of smart contracts. [Read more at the Bank of Russia and IZ.RU]

Fast payments: design and adoption

The BIS published a paper that lays out the main design features of fast payment systems (FPS) that may foster adoption. Cross-country regressions suggest that adoption of fast payments is greater when the public sector plays an active role in the FPS. Other design factors important for adoption are non-bank participation, more use cases and more cross-border connections. [Read more at the BIS]

*For those interested in intra-day updates, check out my searchable Diigo Fintech developments database, which is also a good place to go to query for past developments: https://www.diigo.com/user/kiffmeister/ART.

Kiffmeister’s 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 (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 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]