Title Page
FINTECH NOTE
Towards Central Bank Digital Currencies in Asia and the Pacific
Results of a Regional Survey
Sarwat Jahan, Elena Loukoianova, Evan Papageorgiou, Natasha Che, Ankita Goel, Mike Li, Umang Rawat, and Yong Sarah Zhou
September 2022
Copyright Page
©2022 International Monetary Fund
Towards Central Bank Digital Currencies in Asia and the Pacific: Results of a Regional Survey
Note/2022/009
Sarwat Jahan, Elena Loukoianova, Evan Papageorgiou, Natasha Che, Ankita Goel, Mike Li, Umang Rawat, and Yong Sarah Zhou*
DISCLAIMER: Fintec Notes offer practical advice from IMF staff members to policymakers on important issues. The views expressed in Fintec Notes are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.
RECOMMENDED CITATION: Jahan, Sarwat, Elena Loukoianova, Evan Papageorgiou, Natasha Che, Ankita Goel, Mike Li, Umang Rawat, and Yong Sarah Zhou. 2022. “Towards Central Bank Digital Currencies in Asia and the Pacific: Results of a Regional Survey” IMF Fintec Note 2022/009, International Monetary Fund, Washington, DC.
| ISBN: | 979–8-40022–152-1 (Paper) 979–8-40022–155-2 (ePub) 979–8-40022–157-6 (PDF) |
| JEL Classification Numbers: | E42, E58, G21, G28 |
| Keywords: | Blockchain; cash; central bank digital currency; crypto asset; distributed ledger technology; payments |
| Authors’ email addresses: | sjahan@imf.org eloukoianova@imf.org epapageorgiou@imf.org nche@imf.org agoel2@imf.org xli3@imf.org urawat@imf.org yzhou@imf.org |
| ISBN: | 979–8-40022–152-1 (Paper) 979–8-40022–155-2 (ePub) 979–8-40022–157-6 (PDF) |
| JEL Classification Numbers: | E42, E58, G21, G28 |
| Keywords: | Blockchain; cash; central bank digital currency; crypto asset; distributed ledger technology; payments |
| Authors’ email addresses: | sjahan@imf.org eloukoianova@imf.org epapageorgiou@imf.org nche@imf.org agoel2@imf.org xli3@imf.org urawat@imf.org yzhou@imf.org |
Contents
List of Acronyms
Introduction
I Survey Design and Comparison with Others
II Results of the Survey
Fact I The Asia-Pacific region is at the forefront of CBDC exploration
Fact II Interest in CBDC development has clearly been on the rise in Asia-Pacific
Fact III Central banks in Asia are interested both in wholesale and retail CBDCs
Fact IV Only a few countries currently have the legal authority to issue a CBDC, while others are contemplating legal reforms
Fact V Organizational arrangements vary among different CBDC projects in Asia-Pacific
Fact VI The key drivers for countries’ interest in CBDCs differ by income group
Fact VII While there is a significant interest in CBDCs, very few countries are likely to issue CBDCs in the near to medium term
Fact VIII Although there is a plethora of technology and design choices, countries at more advanced stages in Asia seem to adopt common features
Fact IX Challenges of adopting CBDCs are many, and Asian countries are in the testing stage of finding solutions
Fact X The landscape of CBDCs in the Asia-Pacific region is intertwined with crypto assets
Fact XI PICs have also shown interest in CBDCs and crypto assets as a way of leveraging new technology to enhance financial inclusion and cross-border payments
Fact XII There is a strong appetite for learning from cross-country experiences, regardless of the stage of development in launching a CBDC
III Lessons Learned from the Survey and Country Case Studies
IV Concluding Remarks
Annex I Coverage of Economies
Annex II Country Case Studies
Category I China and Hong Kong SAR – The First Movers
Category II India and Thailand – Preparing Pilots
Category III Australia, Japan, Korea, and Singapore – Strong R&D
Category IV Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam – Keeping up with Crypto Assets
Category V Cambodia – Leveraging Technology Used for CBDCs
Category VI Pacific Island Countries – Testing the Waters
Category VII International Integration (project mBridge & Dunbar) – Strength in Numbers
Annex III Survey Questions
References
FIGURES
Figure 1 Prominence of CBDCs and Crypto in the Asia-Pacific Region
Figure 2 Synopsis of the Survey
Figure 3 Status of CBDC Projects in Asia-Pacific Region (excluding Pacific Islands)
Figure 4 Timeline of Stages in CBDC Adoption
Figure 5 Interest in CBDCs
Figure 6 Legal Authority to Issue CBDC
Figure 7 Organizational Arrangements
Figure 8 Drivers of Considering CBDC Issuance
Figure 9 Likelihood of CBDC Issuance by Type
Figure 10 Crypto Transaction Volumes
Figure 11 Number of Active Correspondent Banking Relationships
TABLES
Table 1 Technology Choices: Advanced CBDC Movers—China and Thailand
Table A1 List of Economies Covered in the CBDC Survey
List of Acronyms
| AE | Advanced economy |
| AML/CFT | Anti-money laundering/Combating the financing of terrorism |
| API | Application programming interface |
| ASEAN | Association of Southeast Asian Nations |
| BI | Bank Indonesia |
| BNM | Bank Negara Malaysia (the central bank of Malaysia) |
| BoJ | Bank of Japan |
| BoK | Bank of Korea |
| BOT | Bank of Thailand |
| BSP | Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (the central bank of the Philippines) |
| CBDC | Central bank digital currency |
| DLT | Distributed ledger technology |
| EM | Emerging market |
| HKMA | Hong Kong Monetary Authority |
| KYC | Know your customer |
| LIC | Low-income country |
| MAS | Monetary Authority of Singapore |
| PBoC | People’s Bank of China |
| PIC | Pacific Island country |
| PSP | Payment service provider |
| PvP | Payment versus payment |
| QRIS | Quick response code Indonesian standard |
| R&D | Research and development |
| RBA | Reserve Bank of Australia |
| RBI | Reserve Bank of India |
| RBNZ | Reserve Bank of New Zealand |
This paper was written under the supervision of Anne-Marie Gulde-Wolf and Harald Finger. It drew from inputs of IMF country teams in the Asia and Pacific region and information provided by country authorities. The paper greatly benefitted from comments and discussions with Dong He, Tommaso Mancini-Griffoli, Gabriel Soderberg, Tao Sun, and other IMF staff. Nadine Dubost provided excellent editorial assistance.