Crypto Twitter is not happy with the name and logo of Jamaican CBDC

Published at: Feb. 22, 2022

The Bank of Jamaica revealed the name of its upcoming central bank digital currency (CBDC) after a design competition, only to receive backlash from the local crypto community. 

The central bank of Jamaica announced on Twitter that it had chosen the name "Jam-Dex" along with the tagline and logo for its upcoming CBDC, scheduled for late 2022. While the project is promising, its name could be easily confused with a decentralized exchange (DEX), and its logo is "terrible," according to the community response.

The name Jam-Dex is said to be taken from Jamaican Digital Exchange, with the slogan "no cash, no problem." It was picked as the winner by the central bank following a competition. While the winner took J$600,000 ($3,800) home, the community is somewhat left unsatisfied with the result.

. Is it a CBDC or a DEX? And I appreciate the attempt at crowd sourcing the design - fairly Web 3 of you but... this logo cannot work. It should have been put to a broader voting mechanism - the panelists let you down here big time

— Jaymeon Jones (@Jaymeon__Jones) February 18, 2022

In the cryptocurrency world, a 'DEX' usually refers to a decentralized exchange. A decentralized exchange refers to an exchange where there is no centralized authority, but rather a network of peer-to-peer nodes. These nodes allow users to trade directly with each other without any intermediaries involved. In this model, the control of your funds lies in your hands and you trade directly with another person.

The local crypto community was eager to see the rejected designs:

Can we see some.of the rejected designs?

— Zj Sparks 九 (@Sparkiebaby) February 17, 2022

Some of the other competitors were not happy with the end result, either:

Can't believe this beat my design lol :Image 2 (mines) pic.twitter.com/9qHdZPIFkF

— Jamaican Investor (@Jamaican0071) February 17, 2022

Another user argued that judges had “outdated” standards:

We actually have a problem where the judges have out-dated standards, which discourage local designers who apply more international standards to their designs.

— Jeyded (@jeyd_ed) February 17, 2022

Others were simply concerned about the project would not be taken seriously due to its logo:

The Logo is terrible at this point no one will take you serious like seriously you want to go in the most advanced state of money but your logo was created by a 5yo mind smh that's what you are projecting why would people who understand this space would invest here

— crypto carib (@OnceAga55838598) February 19, 2022

As reported by Cointelegraph, Jamaica revealed its plans to launch a CBDC in 2020 as an alternative to cryptocurrencies, making it one of the Caribbean countries to do so. The country's central bank distinguished CBDCs and other cryptocurrencies, stating that cryptocurrencies do not entirely fulfill the requirements of money and are not always backed by a core authority.

Related: Central Bank of Kenya seeks public input on potential CBDC

Nigeria was one of the first countries in the world to launch a CBDC that is open to everyone. The United States is currently evaluating the prospects of a digital dollar. El Salvador, on the other hand, has taken a different approach. The Central American nation has embraced Bitcoin fully instead of developing its own digital currency.

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