Euro and co.

More and more countries are testing their own digital currencies

In the fall of 2023, the European Central Bank gave the green light for a preparatory phase towards a digital euro.

(Bild: ©peterschreiber.media - stock.adobe.com)

More and more countries are exploring digital versions of their national currencies. According to a study published on Tuesday by the US think tank Atlantic Council, 134 countries and communities of countries are now testing national digital currencies.

Just four years ago, there were only 35 countries. In almost half of the countries, these studies were already at an advanced stage. The issue of state digital currencies is also currently being explored in all 20 leading industrialized and emerging countries (G20), the Atlantic Council noted.

Central banks around the world are testing state digital currencies in response to increasing competition in digital payment transactions from companies such as Paypal or Apple Pay and the rise of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.

By issuing central bank digital currency - known in the trade as "CBDC" - they want to prevent digital payment transactions from being left entirely to the private sector in the face of the increasing decline in the use of cash.

Bahamas leads the way
In 2020, the island nation of the Bahamas was the first country in the world to officially introduce a digital version of its currency, the "Sand Dollar". According to the Atlantic Council, Jamaica and Nigeria have now also put CBDCs into circulation alongside the Bahamas.

In the fall of 2023, the European Central Bank gave the green light for a preparatory phase towards a digital euro. The aim is to finalize the regulations and select providers for the development of the platform and infrastructure. This phase is initially scheduled to last two years.

China ahead of launch
The world's largest pilot project with a digital currency is currently underway in China. According to official figures, the use of the e-CNY prototype has almost quadrupled to the equivalent of 987 billion dollars (around 887.11 billion euros). The Atlantic Council expects China's central bank to be ready to launch a digital currency in around a year's time.

Last year, the Bank for International Settlements presented the results of a survey according to which around two dozen state digital currencies could be in circulation around the world by 2030.