The Riksbank, Sweden's central bank, has been devoting time and energy to researching and developing a central bank digital currency, the E-Krona. The Riksbank has released a report going through the third phase of its research with a focus on a collaboration model for retail payments and conditional payments. The team looked at the potential for collaboration with existing private payment services, what governance regulations need to be considered, and how developments could be achieved.
The Riksbank discussed that a collaborative model could potentially face issues if the guidelines are too loose, so a Riksbank-operated app with a standardized interface may be a better option. The report looked at the successful trial conditional payment involving the purchase of a car, and how the transparency of the system can affect bank secrecy and help to identify bad behavior in service providers.
The E-Krona is seen by the Riksbank as a potential solution to issues such as privacy questions, thus making it an urgent matter. The team has also been involved in Project Icebreaker for cross-border retail payments and remittances.
Not only is Sweden looking to revolutionize the use of money amongst its locals, but their research could have major implications for the use of digital money internationally. There have been debates surrounding the concept of currency and the death of money related to the rise of the E-Krona. It is notable that the research is still being conducted on the concept and that no decisions have yet been made on its issuance. But for now, this research looks as if it's shaking up the financial world as we know it.
Sarah Walker
- 2023-04-12
Researching Sweden's E-Krona Digital Currency
The Riksbank, Sweden's central bank, has been researching and developing a central bank digital currency, the E-Krona. This could potentially disrupt the global financial sector, as it raises questions on the concept of money with the rise of digital cash.
