<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u00a0
The Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Dr Ernest Addison has said the launch of the digital currency- the e-cedi, has to be slowed because the central bank\u2019s priorities for the project have changed.<\/p>\n
He added that the dislocation of the country\u2019s economy has affected the launch of the e-cedi project.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the 111th MPC press briefing in Accra on Monday (27 March), Addison said, \u201cAs you know we have made a lot of progress with the e-cedi.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe pilot that we started has been concluded but in terms of our priorities, we initially thought we would have launched the\u00a0e-cedi\u00a0by now unfortunately for us 2022 happened; a year in which we had a very major dislocation of the economy, the inflation rate went very high and the currency lost a lot of value.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not the context in which you want to launch a digital currency. So we had to sort of slow down the process on that and refocus our effort on the macro, try to bring inflation down and then at that point we will go back to the e-cedi project and decide on the launch date. So the priorities have shifted because of the development in 2022,\u201d Addison adde.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0e-cedi\u00a0is designed as a digital replica of the Ghana cedi notes and coins. It is crafted as a retail token-based digital currency stored in a digital wallet, convertible to Ghana cedis in the form of cash or deposit money on a 1:1 ratio.
\u00a0
This is to say that the owner of e-cedis can redeem them for physical cedis and use it for a variety of payments.<\/p>\n
Money laundering
\u00a0
A survey by the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) indicates that 85% of respondents believe the e-cedi can help reduce money laundering and other illegal financial activities given the traceability and transparency usually associated with blockchain enabled solutions.<\/p>\n
According to the\u00a0PwC 2021 Ghana Banking survey, 60% of the respondents expect an improvement in the country\u2019s foreign exchange reserves on the back of the safer, quicker and traceable medium of cross border payments and remittances the e-cedi provides.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt must however be emphasised that the reserve positions of a country are much more a function of the competitiveness of that economy supported by the goods and services it produces and offers and the demand for those,\u201d the survey added.<\/p>\n
Banks expect a boost in trade finance activities with the introduction of the\u00a0e-cedi. \u201cClearly there are benefits to the regulator and the nation at large if the e-cedi is well implemented.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to the survey, 95% of the respondents believe the e-cedi will positively impact the banking sector and wider economy by deepening financial inclusion, supporting the country\u2019s digitisation agenda and helping improve monetary policy given the enhanced control of the regulator over money supply in digital currency form.<\/p>\n
Infrastructure for e-cedi introduction<\/p>\n
Also, 80% of the respondents are not ready with the required infrastructure and or are not sure if their current infrastructure will support the use of the e-cedi when introduced.<\/p>\n
However, 78% of the respondents believe whatever form the e-cedi takes and technology requirements, their infrastructure should be ready within two years.<\/p>\n
Source: asaaseradio.com<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n
Featured Video
<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Disclaimer<\/span>: Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.<\/span><\/td>\n
\n <\/tr>\n
\n<\/table>\n
\n
\n <\/p>\n