As a step forward in the offensive of payment systems based on blockchain technology, MasterCard launched the Crypto Partner Program, integrating more than 85 digital asset companies, such as Binance, Ripple, and PayPal.

This project aims to offer users advantages over traditional payment infrastructure, focusing on cross-border payments, business-to-business payments, and the practical use of digital assets, including CBDCs.

“The initiative aims to integrate blockchain payments with banks, merchants, and consumers in more than 200 countries and territories,” according to MasterCard, in a joint effort with “exchanges, blockchain developers, fintech firms, and banks, with the goal of exploring how digital asset-based systems can operate alongside traditional payment lanes.”

Other prominent crypto and technology companies involved in the program include Consensys, Fluency, Fireblocks, Circle, Gemini, and Paxos, integrated into a plan to bridge the gap between blockchain and the traditional payment system. For MasterCard, the challenge “lies in connecting new technologies with networks that already process global payments at scale, something crucial if broader adoption in the real economy is desired.”

M.Pino

Source: diariobitcoin

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The digital euro could see the light of day in October 2025. In the meantime, authorities are focused on two key issues: privacy and holding limits.

A second report published by the European Central Bank (ECB) details the progress of the “preparatory stage of the issuance of the digital euro.”

Of course, the regulatory body also continues to analyze aspects such as the harmonization of laws. “Following a review of the regulation in development for the digital euro, the Regulation Development Group launched seven lines of work with market participants and central banks that will continue its development.”

This regulation focuses on “harmonising national laws to ensure universal standards”. In parallel, research continues on “a user profile of the digital euro to identify the needs of potential users. This information will include user preferences on holding limits, which will be considered in technical research carried out with national central banks”.

The report highlights the importance of maintaining the euro as the European currency. In addition, the possibility of “payment service providers (PSP)” using the digital euro infrastructure to create new payment services.

M.Pino

Source: cointelegraph

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La entrada Digital euro developments focus on privacy and holding limits apareció primero en Bitfinance.

The Central Bank of Norway is studying the measures necessary for the country’s financial stability, including the launch of a CBDC that would contribute to improving cross-border payments.

Although the nation has given its support to the Markets in Cryptoassets Regulation (MiCA), it is currently analyzing a project on additional regulations to promote financial stability, led at the Central Bank by Kjetil Watne.

Watne has stressed that the bank has not yet made a decision but “is evaluating how to mitigate regulatory gaps related to decentralized finance.”

The project director has indicated that the Central Bank sees central bank digital currencies as a tool to improve cross-border transactions, without replacing fiat money or cash payments.

Support for MiCA but with caution

The European Union’s MiCA regulation comes into force on December 30. In this regard, its implementation could pose systematic risks for stablecoin reserves, according to Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether.

“Under MiCA, stablecoin issuers will be required to hold a significant portion of their reserves, at least 60 %, in European banks, which creates a concern regarding lending,” Ardoino stresses, noting that the MiCA requirements “could create significant points of vulnerability for reserves if a bank holding them goes bankrupt” considering that banks can lend up to 90% of their reserves.

M.Pino

Source: cointelegraph

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La entrada Norway is considering launching a CBDC to stabilize its economy apareció primero en Bitfinance.

A strategic partnership between the Central Reserve Bank of Peru and telecommunications company Viettel Perú, the South American country has launched its first CBDC pilot project.

The BCRP did not release details about this project. However, it is known that the Vietnamese telecommunications company Viettel Group began operations in the nation in 2014.

The partnership between both organizations will allow Peru to advance on the path towards the digitalization of payments to improve efficiency and reduce costs. Likewise, the way is paved for “financial inclusion,” taking into account that the most recent data indicates that “only half of Peruvians had access to formal financial accounts.”

Given this situation, it is noted that “Peru depends largely on cash. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), high costs and insufficient digital infrastructure remain vital impediments.”

The IMF estimates that a CBDC would help eliminate barriers in the digital payments sector. In any case, the country would be forced to establish “some critical considerations, such as offering the digital solution through USSD, since a large part of the population does not own a smartphone,” in addition to “decoupling the CBDC from the banking system, since the people who need it most do not have bank accounts.”

M.Pino

Source: cripto247

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La entrada Central Bank of Peru launched first CBDC pilot project apareció primero en Bitfinance.

Peru will begin pilot tests for a central bank currency, or CBDC, according to the recent announcement by the Central Reserve Bank of Peru.

The local institution has indicated that the main objective is to promote financial inclusion “as an innovative solution in the market in a controlled manner.”

Through circular number 0011-2024BCRP, “Digital Money Innovation Pilot Regulations”, the regulatory body announced the initiative that will have technical assistance from the International Monetary Fund.

The pilot plan is aimed at “facilitating access to digital payment services for the unbanked population, ensuring that they make the population’s economic transactions more practical.”

During the tests, which will be carried out in a controlled manner, digital money issued by the Central Bank will be used, and the private sector will participate.

M.Pino

Source: cointelegraph

(Reference image source: Unsplash+, in collaboration with Getty Images)

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La entrada Peru will test CBDC with support from the IMF apareció primero en Bitfinance.

The Central Bank of Chile recently indicated that the tests started in May 2022 for the launch of a new digital currency will be expanded.

In the announcement made last Thursday, the Central Bank of the South American country indicated that there will be tests in a controlled environment, which is known as a sandbox, “to better understand the challenges and implications in technological and operational terms that the eventual issuance of a digital currency.”

The measure has been included in the second report “Issuance of a Central Bank Digital Currency in Chile”, which records the dialogue and interaction with the public carried out by the regulatory entity on the potential issuance of a CBDC.

This year, the explorations will include the relevant processes to complement the analysis and study, with an applied instance, so that the Chilean economy aligns with the advances of other countries in this area.

The bank has made it clear that the evidence does not indicate that the decision to issue a digital currency in the country has already been made. Much less is it a replacement or substitution for traditional Chilean means of payment, particularly cash.

“The Central Bank of Chile continues to consider that there is still not enough information to make a definitive decision regarding its issuance,” according to the report.

With these tests, Chile seeks to follow in the footsteps of other central banks in the international environment, added to the increasingly marked digitalization of payments, as a sign of technological evolution.

The Central Bank of Chile is betting with the measure to achieve greater benefits related to or derived from the digital economy.

M.Pino

Source: americaeconomia

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Ron DeSantis, a staunch opponent of central bank digital currency (CBDC), decided to withdraw from the White House race. The politician expressed his inability to continue a campaign without a clear path to victory.

In an emotional 4-minute statement shared on X, DeSantis confirmed his long-awaited endorsement of former President Donald Trump. “I won’t stop now. It is clear that most Republican voters want to give Donald Trump another chance,” he said.

In the recent Iowa primary of the Republican Party, held on January 15, DeSantis came in second, trailing Trump by a margin of 21%. The Florida Governor, who officially launched his candidacy in July 2023, acknowledged the lack of support and visibility needed to stay in the race.

During his campaign, DeSantis pledged to ban an eventual version of the digital dollar if he reached the presidency. “If I am president, on the first day we will cancel the central bank’s digital currency. Done. Dead. It won’t happen in this country,” he said at an event in Iowa.

This position is also backed by Donald Trump, who, during a recent speech in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, promised to “never allow” the creation of a CBDC by the Federal Reserve.

The CBDC, a form of digital national currency backed by a nation’s central bank, has sparked debate around the world. While some see potential improvements in efficiency and financial inclusion, critics warn of possible breaches of privacy and excessive government control.

K. Tovar

Source: Cointelegraph

(Reference image source: X, @SaharaReporters)

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La entrada Ron DeSantis withdrew his candidacy for the US presidential race apareció primero en Bitfinance.

The speech by the director of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, during the inauguration of the FinTech Festival in Singapore, was an exhortation to public institutions to prepare for the implementation of CBDCs as an instrument of financial inclusion.

The European official was optimistic about the creation and circulation of central bank digital currencies, although she noted that the trend is still in its initial stage.

In his opinion, few countries have made progress in creating a CBDC. Georgieva estimates that 60 % of nations are in the exploratory phase.

The IMF president maintains her commitment to CBDCs as an instrument for financial inclusion for unbanked populations, but weighs the fact that they could be the final blow for fiat money.

In her speech, he noted that “CBDCs can coexist with private money, being their safe and low-cost alternative.”

Likewise, he stressed the importance of having the necessary technologies to develop CBDCs, as well as investing in security measures to safeguard user data, in addition to the evaluation of risks related to cryptocurrencies and stablecoins.

The FinTech Festival was the setting for the presentation of the IMF’s CBDC virtual manual, by its director, who also addressed the importance of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in the framework of public sector digital money projects.

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Source: cointelegraph

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La entrada IMF says CBDCs can promote financial inclusion apareció primero en Bitfinance.

In a significant development, China opened a pioneering industrial park aimed at developing the digital yuan ecosystem, which is also known as the central bank digital currency (CBDC), according to Chinese press reports.

This innovative industrial park is located in the Luohu district in Shenzhen, near Hong Kong, and is beginning its journey with the arrival of nine resident companies. The district government, in an effort to boost the development of the digital yuan, has announced ten key initiatives, covering payment solutions, smart contracts, digital wallets and promoting the use of the digital yuan.

To encourage business participation in the park, attractive incentives are offered, including a free rental period of up to three years for residents. Commercial banks that choose to establish themselves in the park can receive financial support of up to 20 million yuan (equivalent to 2.7 million US dollars), while startups can be eligible for financing of up to 50 million yuan (or 6.9 million dollars).

Total government support has been set at an impressive 100 million yuan, in addition to offering loans at advantageous rates to promote development.

Among the park’s first tenants are prominent companies such as Hengbao, Wuhan Tianyu Information and Lakala Payment. Hengbao and Tianyu are dedicated to the production of payment cards, among other products, while Lakala Payment is a payment processor and Visa collaborator.

The Chinese government has implemented a series of measures to encourage the use of the digital yuan, which is currently in the pilot stage. Twenty-six cities are participating in this pilot and the CBDC is already accepted by more than 5.6 million merchants, a number that will undoubtedly continue to increase thanks to government incentives and technological advances.

Recently, the digital yuan application has incorporated an option that allows tourists to load money into their wallets using Visa and Mastercard. Despite this, adoption is considered slow, with only 261 million digital yuan wallets created by 2022.

K. Tovar

Source: Cointelegraph

(Referential image source: Aleksi Räisä, Unsplash)

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La entrada China inaugurated the first industrial park dedicated to the digital yuan apareció primero en Bitfinance.

The Minister of Economy of Argentina, Sergio Massa, indicated this Monday that the country needs a digital currency, which is why he has sent the project for a CBDC to Congress.

Although there are no further details about a digital currency from the Argentine central bank, Massa has insisted that the country needs a CBDC, which provides greater security against crimes such as tax evasion, among others, and is under the control of the Central Bank.

According to Massa, “Argentina takes more dollars out of the country than it brings in, its economy is in the black, and it also has problems in the tax system that limit development.”

This reality leads to the search for alternatives for the financial and economic apparatus of the South American country. Regarding the creation of a CBDC, Massa added: “We are going to launch the Argentine digital currency, just as your children propose in their platform economy, the possibility of trading with the cell phone or with the card, we are going to do it in a way global for all of Argentina, along with a money laundering law, so that those who have money abroad can bring it to use tax-free.”

The governor of Chaco, Jorge Capitanich, joined Massa’s position, pointing out that Argentina requires a multimonetary system; that citizens can pay with different currencies, and for this a legal and mandatory digital currency is required.

A CBDC would provide greater openness, stability and security to the financial system, in addition to opening doors to the consolidation of other sectors, such as labor, goods and services, among others.

The central bank’s digital currency has the same guarantees as paper money, issued by the central bank, although it does not have a physical counterpart.

M.Pino

Source: news.agrofy

(Reference image source: EconomiaArg, Europa Press / dpa)

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La entrada Argentina sends CBDC project to congress apareció primero en Bitfinance.