Tim Massad, who served as chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission until 2017, said the United States is too slow in developing a plan to modernize its payment systems. In a Wednesday hearing of the Joint Economic Committee on the role of digital assets in government, Massad said a central bank digital currency, or CBDC, could be one solution for the United States to improve its existing payments systems, which he referred to as “slow” and “expensive.” In addition, the former CFTC chair said while stablecoins could be used for this purpose, they also presented some of the most …

The Bank of Russia will only fully adopt a central bank digital currency (CBDC) if the digital ruble meets several conditions within pilot tests, governor Elvira Nabiullina said. Nabiullina spoke of the digital ruble before the State Duma Committee on Financial Markets on Monday, disclosing more details about the CBDC rollout, local news agency Interfax reported. The Bank of Russia will only adopt the CBDC after the bank makes sure that rubles can be easily converted from cash into the digital ruble and non-cash, and only at a one-to-one ratio, she said. “It should be a real full-fledged ruble, no …

Sir Jon Cunliffe, the Deputy Governor for Financial Stability at the Bank of England (BoE) crypto may pose an imminent threat to the traditional financial system. During a Nov. 15 interview with the BBC’s “Today” program, Cunliffe argued that the rapid growth of digital assets and their integration with traditional financial services could soon pose systemic risks, stating: “[Cryptocurrencies] are growing very fast, and they’re becoming integrated more into what I might call the traditional financial system.” “So the point at which they pose a risk is getting closer. I think regulators and legislators need to think very hard about …

As the U.S. federal government — acting through its Securities and Exchange Commission — continues to valiantly protect investors and the public interest from the grave dangers of a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, one major American city after another begin embracing or at least exploring the potential of crypto and blockchain technology to improve various aspects of city finance, administration and residents’ monetary well-being. Following the lead of Miami, New York, Tampa and Jackson, Tennessee, it is now Philadelphia that is looking into the ways to implement blockchain solutions in city government. The hope is that a series of city …

Stablecoins are the cornerstone of the digital asset marketplace with a market cap of over $100 billion. Governments are already putting considerable resources in being up to speed with the trends. A November 2021 report published by the United States President’s Working Group on Financial Markets details the various measures to ensure stablecoin regulation is implemented within government guidelines. A global central bank survey by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) shows 86% of central banks are now actively engaged in some way with central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), a government-backed form of a stablecoin. Of this cohort of central …

E-commerce giant JD.com took payments in China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) at a massive local shopping event. JD.com accepted digital yuan (e-CNY) for payment on its e-commerce application for the Singles Day promotion period which began on Oct. 31 and ended on Nov. 11, the firm confirmed on Thursday. Singles Day is an unofficial shopping holiday in the country that also celebrates people who aren't in a romantic relationship. “100,000 people had used e-CNY on JD.com’s app during the Singles Day promotion period as of today,” a spokesperson for JD.com told Cointelegraph. “We will continue to work with related …

Zimbabwe's Minister of Information publicly dismissed ongoing rumors about the country considering the adoption of cryptocurrencies and Bitcoin (BTC). Rather, Minister Monica Mutsvangwa clarified that the government of Zimbabwe is keen to experiment with a central banking digital currency (CBDC). The rumor about Zimbabwe’s crypto adoption was sparked based on numerous reports quoting Charles Wekwete, Permanent Secretary of the President’s office, saying that the government was in talks with the private sector businesses to help introduce cryptocurrency in the country. Just one day after the reports, Mutsvangwa took to a cabinet briefing to dismiss the ongoing crypto adoption claims: “Government …

During a virtual video session at the Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies' 30th Anniversary Conference, People's Bank of China governor Gang Yi discussed recent developments regarding the country's central bank digital currency, or CBDC, known as the digital yuan (e-CNY). Gang specifically addressed the issue of privacy surrounding the Digital Yuan in the following statement, as translated by Cointelegraph: We are taking a high degree of focus on issues surrounding the security of personal information and the digital yuan and have made relevant regulatory and technological adjustments to meet this objective. We have adopted a principle of anonymity …

The Bank of England and the U.K. finance ministry are planning to launch a consultation on the possible rollout of a central bank digital currency starting in 2022. In a Nov. 9 statement, the Bank of England said the digital pound consultation with HM Treasury would consider design features, benefits and implications for users and business, as well as other relevant issues. The results of the 2022 consultation will determine whether U.K. authorities intend to move forward with a central bank digital currency, or CBDC. “If the results of this ‘development’ phase conclude that the case for CBDC is made, …

On Tuesday, the governor of Russia's Central Bank, Elvira Nabiullina, said that the country will have a prototype of its digital rouble platform ready by early 2022 and will roll it out for trial use next year before making a final decision on whether or not to release its own digital currency, according to a Reuters report. Meanwhile, Russian lawmakers will reportedly begin working on the legal adjustments needed to implement the digital ruble plan to accommodate the digital currency. According to Izvestia, the State Duma Committee on the Financial Market head Anatoly Aksakov stated that these legal modifications would …

Singaporean central bank Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has ramped up efforts to research and develop a central bank digital currency (CBDC) for retail use under the Project Orchid initiative. According to MAS managing director Ravi Menon, Singapore’s retail CBDC will be developed in partnership with private entities, which “would be the digital equivalent of today’s notes and coins.” Speaking at the Singapore FinTech Festival, Menon highlighted the benefits of retail CBDCs in aiding faster and secure online transactions and building an inclusive payment ecosystem. He also believes that building an in-house retail CBDC can reduce the inherent investment risks …

China’s trials with central bank digital currency (CBDC) show no signs of slowing down, as the updated numbers for October 2021 revealed at Hong Kong Fintech Week. Set out to replace cash in day-to-day transactions, the digital yuan (e-CNY) is gaining traction among individuals and corporates alike, according to PBoC’s Digital Currency Institute head Mu Changchun. Speaking at the conference on Wednesday, Mu said the number of individual digital yuan accounts hit 140 million while corporates created another 10 million accounts. While the official launch date is still unclear for e-CNY, China has continued to expand the rollout of trials …