Canada’s central bank scrapped its CBDC idea to focus on more pressing requirements. The CBDC program has been in effect since 2017.
A CBC report confirmed that the Bank of Canada (BoC) is putting aside its plans to introduce a national Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). This move comes as the Canadian central bank focuses on other pressing issues and works to improve payments by other means via policy research and analysis.
As CBDC introduction remains a raging topic in most nations, with 134 countries working on it in some form, only three have deployed full-scale programs. Those include the Bahamas, Nigeria, and Jamaica—three nations that still have developing economies.
It seems the BoC has lost interest in developing a national digital currency. In an email to CBC, it mentioned, “The Bank has undertaken significant research towards understanding the implications of a retail central bank digital currency, including exploring the implications of a digital dollar on the economy and financial system, and the technological approaches to providing a digital form of public money that is secure and accessible.”
Canada’s CBDC Program Has Been in Place for Years
Canada’s digital currency research project started in 2017 as payments took on a more digitalized nature and with the emergence of cryptocurrencies. The BoC also had a consultation process with the public in 2022 and even released a discussion paper this year affirming its CBDC development to help maintain the country’s monetary sovereignty.
“One of the things that this cryptocurrency revolution has brought to the forefront is that we need to do more innovation,” chief market strategist of Corpay, Karl Schamotta, told CBC. “But at the same time, we also need to preserve safety and many of the features of the monetary system that have been created over centuries and tested out over time,” he added. For that reason, Schamotta relayed that he was not caught off-guard by the BoC’s decision to shelf its CBDC plan.
