France to pilot CBDC in early 2020

05 Dec 2019

France’s central bank is planning to launch a central bank digital currency (CBDC) for financial institutions next year.

Governor of the Bank of France, François Villeroy de Galhau has revealed the bank will begin testing the digital euro project by the end of Q1 2020, according to a report by financial publication Les Echos.

The announcement was made at a conference hosted by financial regulators, the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority and the Autorité des marchés financiers.

As per a Coin Telegraph report, the pilot project will solely be aimed at private financial sector players, and will not involve retail payments made by individuals. Villeroy stated that a cryptocurrency for retail customers would "be subject to special vigilance."

The plan aims to bolster the efficiency of France’s financial system, whilst at the same time asserting the country’s sovereignty over projects such as Facebook’s Libra, according to Villeroy.

In a tweet by the central bank, the governor stressed that France should become the first country to issue a central bank digital currency, providing an exemplary model to other countries.

The governor stated: "I see the interest in rapidly advancing the issuance of at least one central bank digital currency in order to be the leading issuer globally and get the benefits associated with providing an exemplary central bank digital currency.”

Furthermore, France looks to be leading the way in terms of crypto and blockchain adoption. In October, cryptocurrency startup Keplerk relaunched its service to accept Bitcoin, the world’s largest digital currency by market capitalisation, in more than 5,200 tobacco shops across the country.

In addition, as previously reported by Coin Telegraph, around 30 retailers in France are planning to introduce support for Bitcoin payments at more than 25,000 points of sale by early next year.

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