Shenzhen Welcomes Businesses with Benefits to its Digital Yuan Industrial Park
Companies across various sectors – from industrial firms, fintechs, commercial banks, to startups – that decide to set up shop in Shenzhen’s newly inaugurated digital yuan industrial zone will enjoy a suite of perks. These include settlement payments ranging from 500,000 to 50m yuan (roughly US$6.8m), up to three years of rent-free tenure, and loans […]
Standard Chartered and Deutsche Bank Test Stablecoin Payments on UDPN Blockchain
Standard Chartered’s SC Ventures and Deutsche Bank have successfully concluded an initial proof of concept (PoC) using the Universal Digital Payments Network (UDPN). This venture intends to facilitate payments between different Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and blockchain networks through message exchanges, somewhat reminiscent of Swift. However, the distinct difference lies in using a permissioned […]
PetroChina Marks a Milestone with International Crude Oil Trade via Digital Yuan
In a historic move that showcases the evolving landscape of international trade and finance, PetroChina, a leading Chinese oil and gas firm, completed its first international crude oil transaction using the digital yuan. This pioneering transaction was highlighted in a report by China Daily on Saturday. PetroChina, stepping into uncharted territories, acquired a whopping 1 […]
Preserving the Singleness of Money in a Future Digital Currency Ecosystem
This event was jointly hosted with Fireblocks on 7 November 2023. During this webinar, Varun Paul announced a new paper entitled ‘Achieving Uniformity of Tokenized Money Through Smart Contracts’. You can download this paper here. About the webinar In the future, multiple different forms of money – both public and private, and both those currently […]
European Central Bank Advances Digital Euro Project to Preparation Phase
The European Central Bank (ECB) is gearing up to bolster the euro’s digital future. In an announcement made today, the ECB disclosed its decision to transition into the next stage of the digital euro project, marking the commencement of the preparation phase. This development comes on the heels of an extensive investigation phase that began […]
Mastercard’s CBDC Pilot Update: Bridging Ethereum and Digital Currencies
Mastercard, collaborating with the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre, unveiled recent findings from their CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency) experimental project on Thursday. A key highlight was a real-time transaction where an NFT (non-fungible token) was procured on the Ethereum blockchain using a “wrapped” variation of the CBDC, as […]
Australia’s Journey Towards a Tokenized Financial System, according the RBA’s assistant governor
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has expressed interest in adopting a central bank digital currency (CBDC) as the monetary future, envisioning a system where digital money, issued by the state, would act as a tokenized version of central bank reserves. In an address titled “A Tokenised Future for the Australian Financial System,” Brad Jones, […]
Quant Elevates Blockchain Security with its New Central Bank-Grade Key Management Solution
In a significant development for the banking and financial sector, a pioneering solution called Overledger Authorise has been launched to bolster the security of blockchain-based transactions. Historically, financial institutions have banked on advanced key management systems to shield data, applications, and transactions. The dawn of blockchain and digital assets posed a challenge: the prevailing key […]
CBDC vs US Dollar: Will Argentina Adopt a CBDC or Dissolve their Central Bank in Favour of the US Dollar?
On October 22, Argentinians will cast their votes to select their new president. One prominent candidate, Sergio Massa, who currently serves as the Minister of the Economy, has proposed introducing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) if elected. Massa is contesting under the banner of the Union for the Homeland (Unión por la Patria). Argentina’s […]
Asian Games Prompt China to Enhance Digital Yuan Features for Hong Kong Visitors
In the run-up to the Asian Games, China has unveiled two enhancements to its central bank digital currency (CBDC). These changes facilitate Hong Kong travellers to replenish their digital yuan wallets via Hong Kong’s Faster Payment System, as well as through Visa or Mastercard accounts. Although integration efforts between Hong Kong and the digital RMB […]
