The Digital Dollar Project, a non-profit organisation in the US said that it will launch five pilot programs over the course of one year to study the potential uses of a US central bank digital currency.
These pilots are likely to run in the private sector and would be funded by their partner, Accenture Plc.
“There are conferences and papers coming out every week around the world on CBDCs based on data from other countries, what there is not, is any real data and testing from the United States to inform that debate. We’re seeking to generate that real-world data,” said Christopher Giancarlo, former chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and co-founder of the Digital Dollar Foundation.
With the crypto industry here to stay, more and more central banks are looking to into the blockchain industry and specifically digital versions of their respective currencies. While such digital currencies have advantages in terms of transfer speed and decentralisation, the aspect that the central banks would be most concerned about is their safety as they need to ensure that accountability is there.
Central banks are also worried that the crypto payment systems would gain more and more traction and if left unregulated, it is likely that these payment systems and currencies are likely to fall into the wrong hands. So, in order to reign them in, central banks the world over are seriously looking into launching digital currencies so that they continue to retain control over money circulation.
The central banks are likely to allow the various cryptos to have a free run till they are sure about how they would like to take their own digital currencies into the monetary realm. The central banks are likely to tread very cautiously and slowly in this matter to make it absolutely sure that they are doing the right thing. China is suspected to be leading the charge for the introduction of a digital currency but it would be interesting to see what form and shape such a currency would take. Though there are many digital payment options available right now, a digital currency and a corresponding wallet is expected to open a whole new paradigm in this field.
