President of the European Central Bank (ECB) has said that Europe is currently pushing for the creation of a retail CBDC after confirming that they have been behind in the talks about digital payments creation.
The ECB is set to look into the prospect of creating a retail CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency) after it set up a panel to look into the creation of the digital payments system. In a conference where she was the lead speaker, President of the ECB, Christine Lagarde, talked about the domination by other countries in the creation of CBDC amid considerations for the creation of their own.
According to Lagarde, the launch of the CBDC would signal a very good move in terms of innovation around Europe. Even at that, Lagarde still insists that some other nations would have taken a wide lead when the CBDC is eventually created.
President confirms the creation of a retail CBDC
It is no news that major countries around the globe have been looking into the prospect of CBDC creation with China already making pilot tests around the country. In the words of Lagarde, Europe has been pushed behind when it comes to the talk about CBDC.
At the beginning of the year, the ECB set up a panel to look into the prospect of the creation of the digital payments system. Three months later, Yves Mersch, an executive member of the ECB said the bank was just looking into the creation of just retail CBDCs which would be used for payments for goods and services.
Lagarde says CBDC will not rival the usage of cash
In the event, Lagarde confirmed to journalists that the European premier bank was not going to be looking at the creation of a wholesale CBDC.
“The creation of digital money is not a new thing in the affairs of the Central Banks as commercial banks have been able to access the cash”
Furthermore, Lagarde has said that the new retail CBDC is not looking to eliminate the usage of cash but will compliment it in major areas. To make this achievable, she said the local banknotes would be available to citizens of all the European countries. She notes that the bank would make sure the risks of owning it are contained before it is officially launched.