The Central Reserve Bank of Peru, the Peruvian central bank, plans to develop a central bank digital currency (CBDC) like other economies in the world. The announcement was made by its chairman, Julio Velarde, who said the currency would be used primarily for payments. However, Velarde also acknowledged that now is not the best time to present the coin due to the current uncertainty in the markets.
Peru to board the CBDC Bandwagon train
Julio Velarde, president of the Central Bank of Peru, announced that the institution is already working on the creation of a digital currency for the national central bank (CBDC). The announcement was made last week at the 59th Virtual Annual Executive Summit. He said that the creation of such a currency is a necessity in a future based on digital technology. Velarde pointed out:
We worked on a digital currency. We are in many projects with various central banks: with India, Singapore, Hong Kong and with many central banks, thinking of a digital currency that will prevail in the future.While this digital currency is still in its early stages of development, according to Velarde, this puts it in the same class as others that are being developed by economies of similar size. However, Mexico and Brazil are generally distinguished by the advances of the CBDC in the field.
Targeted payment
Peru’s cryptocurrency project appears to be focused on helping the payments industry, which Velarde says will be radically different over an eight-year period. With this work, the country seeks to continue to advance in the field as do other economies. However, Velarde acknowledged that Peru still lacks the necessary resources to carry out this project now, or to face the risk that carrying out such a project implies for the Peruvian economy. The president of the central bank said it was not the right time to pursue this goal.
The announcement surprised many economic players in the country, as Peru is not known to be a particularly pro-cryptocurrency country. The country is still in the early stages of adopting crypto as there is no legal framework to support cryptocurrency (or CBDC) activity in its economy.