Can CBDC Drive Financial Inclusion?
CBDC, or Central Bank Digital Currency, has long garnered the attention of several nations across the globe. Countries such as China, South Korea, Brazil, and Japan are diligently working towards making their sovereign digital currency a reality, taking measures to accelerate its launch. Meanwhile, the Caribbean nation of Bahamas plans to release the Sand Dollar, the digital equivalent of its national currency, by Oct 2020.
Today, Square announced that it has bought 4,709 bitcoins for $50 million. The announcement said, "Square believes cryptocurrency is an instrument of economic empowerment and provides a way to participate in a global monetary system, which aligns with the company’s purpose."
BIS and Central Bank Research Identifies Principles and Core Features For CBDC Issuance
The BIS along with seven central banks has released a report identifying the foundational principles necessary for any publicly available CBDCs to help central banks meet their public policy objectives.
DOJ's Crypto Regulation Report Overview: Bitcoin, Tether, Ether, Litecoin, and Ripple
On Oct 8, the US Department of Justice (DOJ)'s Attorney General William P. Barr introduced the Cryptocurrency Enforcement Framework report, following the news that UK's financial watchdog Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) banned crypto derivatives trading for retail investors.
With the rise in decentralized finance (DeFi) being one of the biggest hits of the blockchain industry in 2020, experts have questioned whether Ethereum, the underlying infrastructure for most DeFi protocols, could sustain the sheer volume of transactions in the long run.