‘We Are Working on a Global CBDC Platform,’ IMF Managing Director Tells African Central Bankers in Morocco
"CBDCs should not be fragmented national propositions... To have more efficient and fairer transactions, we need systems that connect countries: we need interoperability," Georgieva told a conference attended by African central banks in Rabat, Morocco. "For this reason, at the IMF, we are working on the concept of a global CBDC platform," she said.
IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, has announced that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is actively developing a platform dedicated to facilitating transactions involving central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) between different countries.
“CBDCs should not be fragmented national propositions… To have more efficient and fairer transactions, we need systems that connect countries: we need interoperability,” Georgieva told a conference attended by African central banks in Rabat, Morocco.
Merci beaucoup cher gouverneur Jouahri for your warm hospitality & for co-hosting this CBDC conference w/ the IMF.
“For this reason, at the IMF, we are working on the concept of a global CBDC platform,” she said.
In addition to working on a platform for CBDC transactions, the IMF is urging central banks to reach a consensus on a unified regulatory framework for digital currencies. This common regulatory framework would enable global interoperability, ensuring a smooth and coordinated approach to the adoption and use of CBDCs. Georgieva highlighted that without such an agreement, there is a risk of a regulatory vacuum that could potentially be filled by cryptocurrencies.
According to Kristalina Georgieva, 114 central banks worldwide are currently at various stages of exploring central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Among them, approximately 10 central banks have made significant progress and are nearing the completion of their CBDC initiatives.
“If countries develop CDBCs only for domestic deployment we are underutilizing their capacity,” she added.
According to her, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) have the potential to promote financial inclusion and reduce the cost of remittances. Currently, the average cost of money transfers is 6.3%, resulting in an annual total of $44 billion.
The IMF Director emphasized the importance of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) being backed by assets whilie highlighting that CBDCs should have a solid foundation of underlying assets to ensure their stability and reliability as a form of digital currency.
In doing so, Georgieva distinguished between cryptocurrencies, stating that when cryptocurrencies are backed by assets, they can be seen as an investment opportunity. However, when cryptocurrencies lack such backing, they are considered speculative investments.
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