Digital currencies
South Africa signals cautious stance on stablecoins
Deputy governor asks if they are efficient payment method or a means of circumventing regulations
BoJ’s Himino: Stablecoins strengthen dollar privilege
Deputy governor calls for ‘holistic’ system involving stablecoins, CBDCs, tokenisation and cash
MAS supports PFMI monitoring for systemic stablecoins
Assistant managing director says potential for ‘crisis of confidence’ is embedded within instruments
HKMA awards Hong Kong’s first stablecoin licences
HSBC and Standard Chartered-backed JV to mint HKD-denominated assets from mid-2026
Stablecoin demand transmits to FX markets – BIS paper
Inflows into digital assets make acquiring dollars via swap markets more expensive, authors find
Japan to trial blockchain-based central bank money settlement
BoJ’s Ueda says sandbox underway for ‘wide range of settlements’
BNM selects firms for tokenisation and stablecoin pilots
Malaysian institutions to test wholesale payments and tokenised asset settlement
China says tokenisation illegal under existing framework
PBoC and agencies update 2021 crypto guidelines to place restrictions on real world assets
CBDC or tokenised reserves?
Sayuri Shirai explains why central banks are taking different paths towards the same goal
China’s interest-bearing CBDC a world first, experts say
E-CNY now more integrated with commercial banking, thus solidifying country’s two-tier system
Renato Gomes on Pix, Drex and digital asset regulation
Brazil’s deputy governor speaks with Christopher Jeffery about pros and pitfalls of open finance, financial inclusion and crime on Pix, and the need to sideline DLT for Drex phase 3
Book notes: Money in crisis, by Ignazio Angeloni and Daniel Gros
This book should be essential reading for policy-makers at a time of uncertainty and technological change
The prospects for retail CBDCs
Open instant payments systems offer a quicker route to financial deepening, for now
IIF says China’s CBDC irrelevant to renminbi internationalisation
Economists say yuan’s use for payments growing, though it remains “stagnant” as reserve currency
Taiwan’s Yang says central bank money remains global ‘anchor’
Governor says it is still ‘ultimate settlement asset’, notwithstanding development of tokenisation
Bowman and Hill say stablecoin rules are on their way
FDIC acting chair says regulation to establish application framework should come this month
PBoC emphasises stablecoins are illegal in China
Bank reiterates virtual currency ban and says pegged assets fail to meet identity and AML requirements
Gold and bitcoin buys triggered Tether downgrade, says S&P
Agency explains why it gave world’s largest stablecoin its lowest rating for stability
BSP remains cautious about stablecoins as proposals roll in
Deputy governor says most submissions are for dollar-backed assets focused on retail use
Japan will not implement Basel crypto regs by 2026, says FSA
Regulator cites country’s limited exposure to digital assets as reason for not meeting deadline
MAS to issue tokenised bills and draft stablecoin law
MD says Singaporean banks completed first CBDC interbank overnight lending settlement