The Bank of Zambia and the country’s securities regulators are currently testing the technology to regulate cryptocurrencies, a Zambian government minister has said. According to Felix Mutati, cryptocurrency is a revolutionary technology that embodies a future that his country wants to achieve.
Achieving an Inclusive Digital Economy
Zambia’s central bank and the country’s Securities and Exchange Commission are in the process of “testing” the technology to regulate cryptocurrencies, the country’s Science and Technology Minister Felix Mutati said. In his statements published in the Ministry websiteMutati argued that Zambia needs to regulate this “revolutionary technology” because it encapsulates “the future that the country wants to achieve.”
Mutati also revealed that regulatory technology testing will soon be expanded as part of measures to help Zambia achieve an “inclusive digital economy.” In addition, the minister said that Zambia, which seeks to become the technology hub of the region, is already putting in place the necessary infrastructure to help the country achieve that goal.
While the Bank of Zambia has in the past advised against the use of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, Mutati’s comments suggest that President Hakainde Hichilema’s government is embracing cryptocurrencies.
Meanwhile, the minister also stated that Zambia has established itself as an investment destination of choice for many investors.
“Zambia has created a magnetism that attracts investment and is one of the countries in Africa that is becoming a must-see for investment,” Mutati said.
Bringing Zambia’s financial exclusion gap
According to the minister, once the envisioned digital payments infrastructure is in place, he envisions a future where cryptocurrency is the “driver for financial inclusion.” as well as the “change maker for the Zambian economy”.
In addition to using cryptocurrencies to advance the country’s financial inclusion agenda, Zambia hopes to achieve this through the yet-to-launch central bank digital currency (CBDC). As Bitcoin.com News reported in February 2022, the Bank of Zambia began exploring the pros and cons of using a CBDC and was expected to complete it in the fourth quarter of last year.
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