The central bank of the Philippines, otherwise known as Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), expresses its interest in launching its own central bank digital currency (CBDC).
In a story first covered on Bloomberg, the governor of BSP, Benjamin Diokno, stated the country had formed a research committee on the possible launch of digital currency. The article further states that the research team is set to release its findings in the coming month.
The committee, which was formed earlier this year, started its research on the policy implications and potential feasibility that digital currencies bring to the Philippines economy. Speaking in a virtual conference, Diokno said:
“We have to first look at the findings of the group before making a decision.”
This is the first time the country is publicly declaring its interest in developing its digital currency.
Fiat Demand not Going Away Soon
The launch of digital currencies is widely considered as an end to the demand for fiat currencies, rising the skepticism on CBDCs across regulators and financial authorities globally.
Diokno, however, said the need for fiat in the Philippines would remain stable despite an introduction of the CBDC, further stating the importance of the underlying blockchain technology.
Diokno said:
“Cryptocurrency for us has always been beyond the asset itself but more on the blockchain technology that underpins it.”
Philippines will be joining a select group of countries researching and developing their CBDC’s, including its neighbors, China, and Japan. Japan announced it would accelerate its digital yen development with a new CBDC department earlier in the month, and the former is already carrying out testing on the digital yuan.
Source: bitcoinexchangeguide.com
