Jamaica Plans To Launch Central Bank Digital Currencies

On Tuesday, Bank of Jamaica (BoJ) announced that it will soon pilot the CBDC project. Bank of Jamaica is working with Ecurrency Mint Incorporated and plans to launch the cryptocurrency in May. The central bank said in an official statement that the Ecurrency Mint startup will also be the provider when the national rollout of CBDC begins in early 2022. As part of the pilot project, CBDC will be extensively tested from May to the end of December 2021. The CBDC is known to work in conjunction with paper banknotes and Jamaican coins.

The Bank of Jamaica announcement adds the island nation to a growing list of countries creating CBDCs. Venezuela, under the regime of Nicolas Maduro, was one of the first countries where CBDCs began to function. Many other countries are very close to issuing state-backed cryptocurrencies. This includes countries such as China, Sweden, the EU, the Marshall Islands and the Bahamas.

In addition, a number of other countries are considering creating a CBDC, or at least have begun discussions about development. Countries considering development of a CBDC are the United States, Singapore, United Kingdom, South Korea, Japan and Canada.

Image: RISMedia