MNI BRIEF: RBA "Open" To Future CB Digital Currency-Lowe

The public policy case for a Central Bank Digital Currency backed by the Reserve Bank of Australia could “emerge quite quickly” as technology evolved and consumer preferences changes, RBA Governor Philip Lowe said in a speech on Thursday.

Lowe repeated the RBA view that there was currently no strong case for a CBDC, but said the bank was open to the possibility in the future, and that digital tokens could be a lower-cost solution for some payments. The RBA this week completed a pilot project, called Project Atom, in collaboration with leading commercial banks and law firms, with examined the use of a CBDC using distributed ledger technology.

The RBA says the project demonstrated the potential of a CBDC to “improve efficiency, risk management and innovation” in wholesale markets.

Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg yesterday backed a “comprehensive payments and crypto-asset reform plan” to boost innovation and consumer uptake of digital technologies.