New Blockchain Platform Aims to Help Countries Issue CBDCs More Easily

Blockchain firm Apollo Fintech has announced the completion of its National Payment Platform, or NPP on August 12.  This new blockchain platform is a cashless system that supposedly enables a central bank to issue central bank digital currency for national adoption.

The NPP system reportedly allows a government agency and central bank to onboard commercial banks and agents after CBDC is issued. 

It will include features such as SMS, QR codes, cards and offline codes on a mobile application that allows individuals and merchants to transact in a hypothetical CBDC.

CEO of Apollo Fintech Stephen McCullah said, "[NPP] allows economic participants to save large amounts of time and resources and enables an economy to gain massive efficiencies at scale."

NPP is said to remove barriers to accessibility and usability by allowing physical access from any agent locally. Users can also complete CBDC transactions via text messages, meaning that older cellphone models can theoretically transact. McCullah said: 

"By solving accessibility and usability challenges, NPP in conjunction with Apollo Fintech's other financial innovations can lead to accelerated mass adoption of digital payments and cashless transactions." 

As Cointelegraph reported previously, countries globally such as China, Canada and South Korea are looking into implementing their own CBDCs. Yesterday, Cointelegraph reported that China is rolling out its digital yuan for testing in the greater Hong Kong area.