Swiss Central Bank Launches Real-World CBDC Pilot: What It Means

• Swiss Central Bank is launching a wholesale CBDC on Switzerland’s SIX digital exchange as part of a pilot.
• The Swiss Central Bank has continued to remain skeptical of the idea of a retail central bank-backed digital currency.
• At least 10 central banks are “already crossing the finish line” on issuing a central bank digital currency according to IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.

Swiss Central Bank Launches Real-World CBDC Pilot

The chairman of Swiss Central Bank, Thomas Jordan, has announced that the central bank is launching a wholesale CBDC on Switzerland’s SIX digital exchange as part of a pilot. The project will begin soon, Reuters reported.

Wholesale CBDC Pilot

The wholesale CBDC pilot will run on the Swiss SIX digital exchange for a limited time, the bank chair said. He added that the use of retail CBDCs was more difficult to control and expressed his concern about potential risks retail CBDCs could have for the financial system.

Retail CBDC Skepticism

The Swiss Central Bank has continued to remain skeptical of the idea of a retail central bank-backed digital currency. Speaking on a separate panel at the Zero Point Forum,the central bank’s governor Andrea Maechler said that despite exploring CBDCs, they do not see cash disappearing in Switzerland and need to maintain this feature irrespective of technology used.

Central Banks Reaching Finishing Line On Issuing A Digital Currency

Earlier this month, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said that at least 10 central banks are “already crossing the finish line” on issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The IMF also revealed earlier that it is working on an infrastructure for worldwide interoperability for these currencies in order to increase their utilization.

G7 Economies Shifting From Research To Development Phase

All countries in G7 economies have now shifted from research phase to development stage when it comes to issuing their own centralized digital currency (CBDC). Currently, over 100 central banks around the world are exploring their own version of such currencies