Australian central bank launches digital currency project
Retail Banker InternationalAug 09, 2022
On Tues., Australia's central bank announced plans to launch a one-year research project to examine the benefits of a central bank digital currency (CBDC).
As part of the project, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will create a pilot digital Australian dollar and operate it for the duration of the program.
The RBA is taking a necessary step toward normalizing the already-established cryptocurrency market. The question isn't whether the technology works, it's how the government can best collaborate with crypto industry leaders to ensure a CBDC maximizes the potential benefits of an official currency for all Australians.
While a digital currency certainly has advantages, we should have privacy concerns. A CBDC - which would allow the monitoring and restricting of transactions - could become a government instrument that violates people's financial independence.
There's a 50% chance that the total market cap of all cryptocurrencies will be at least 2.99k (in billions USD) by the start of 2027, according to the Metaculus prediction community.