A recent study by analytics firm Juniper Research estimated that payments via central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) could reach $213 billion by 2030.
The firm believes that governments around the world will use the product to boost financial inclusion and improve the monetary condition of emerging economies.
A possible boom in CBDC transactions
Juniper Research experts analyze the fintech and payments market believe CBDC transactions could skyrocket from $100 million in 2023 to $213 billion by 2030 (a staggering 213,000% increase).
The specialists said that the financial product is still in its infancy, adding that global centralized authorities will focus on it to improve digital deals and enable additional money services. However, they could also use it to gain control over consumer finances and monitor their activities.
The research further determined that by 2030, 92% of the total value traded through CBDCs will be paid locally. At a later stage, the tool could start liquidating cross-border settlements. Report author Nick Maynard commented:
“While cross-border payments currently have high costs and slow transaction speeds, this area is not the focus of CBDC development. Since CBDC adoption will be very country-specific, it will be up to cross-border payment networks to link the schemes, allowing the broader payment industry to benefit from CBDCs.”
The potential launch of CBDCs is often supported by government officials and central bankers who believe they will be a better solution than Bitcoin. Janet Yellen –Secretary of the Treasury of the United States– is a defender of this thesis, arguing that a digital dollar could outperform BTC, which has “high fees and slower processing times.”
Most cryptocurrency supporters, on the other hand, are against CBDCs and are of the opinion that centralized institutions will use them to increase their control over people’s cash flows. Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream, saying last year that these products are worse than bank accounts, while bitcoin is “non-political, bearer and non-seizable money”.
Who has joined the CBDC race?
China is the country that comes up immediately when it comes to CBDCs, as its government has launched multiple initiatives to popularize its digital yuan in recent years.
He distributed $4.6 million in e-CNY for Chengdu residents and more than $6 million for Beijing residents by early 2021. Authorities also extended adoption to Shenzhen citizens in 2022, giving away $2.3 million in digital yuan for them.
China even allowed CBDC payments during the Beijing Winter Olympics last year. This caused some controversy between American politicians and their Chinese colleagues.
US Senators: Marsha Blackburn, Roger Wicker and Cynthia Lummis. urged American athletes to stay away from the product, while Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian reclaimed lawmakers should “stick to the spirit” of the Games and “stop making trouble” with things they don’t understand.
Brazil, JapanThe US and South Korea also introduced CBDC test programs to verify how an upcoming digital version of their respective national currency could interact with the local financial network and whether it could use cross-border payments.
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