The central bank in Japan has started The Bank of Japan has tested a new digital currency in an attempt to experiment with how it can be used Monday. The announcement comes after the Chinese government revealed that it was doing something very similar to a digital yuan. in early March.
“The Bank of Japan has made preparations to launch experiments with the central bank’s digital currency (CBDC) in the early financial year 2021, to test the technical feasibility of the core functions and functions required for CBDC,” the Bank of Japan said in a statement. published online. “As the necessary preparations have now been completed, Proof of Concept (PoC) Phase 1 will start today.”
The announcement confirms rumors circulating since late 2020 about Japan’s potential creation of a digital yen. But there is no guarantee that Japan will ever make the digital currency available to the public. According to the Bank of Japan, everything is currently very experimental.
“In PoC Phase 1, the Bank plans to develop a testing environment for the CBDC system and to conduct experiments on the basic functions that are at the core of CBDC as a payment instrument such as issuance, distribution and redemption,” the statement said. the Bank of Japan continued. . “This phase will run until March 2022 for a period of one year.”
Like the Register points out, virtually every major central bank in the world is experiment or rumoredly experiment with digital currencies to ensure they are ready when it’s time to issue one. And as cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ether become more mainstream through services like PayPal, that time may be earlier than later.
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In the USA, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said she supports funding research into a digital dollar, although she indicated the kind of conservative thinking you would expect from a top government official. At least that kind of thinking normal (read: post-Trump) government.
“There’s a lot to consider here, but it’s definitely worth a look,” Yellen said. February.