Hong Kong to Start Testing Digital Currency in Coming Months

2 years ago
Hong Kong to Start Testing Digital Currency successful  Coming Months

China’s peculiar administrative portion of Hong Kong is going to proceedings а integer mentation of its dollar arsenic aboriginal arsenic this year, successful mentation for eventual roll-out. The territory is trying to drawback up with those that are already launching cardinal slope integer currencies, including the People’s Republic with its integer yuan project.

Trials of Digital Hong Kong Dollar Planned for Q4

Hong Kong intends to statesman investigating a currency called the e-HKD, a integer incarnation of the Hong Kong dollar, successful the remaining months of the year. The trials volition beryllium facilitated by the adoption of legislative amendments and the gathering of integer infrastructure indispensable to enactment the project, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced, quoted by the South China Morning Post.

The aviator signifier comes aft consultations conducted to stitchery feedback connected imaginable demand, privateness aspects, and different issues that whitethorn originate astir the issuance of a cardinal slope integer currency (CBDC). Howard Lee, lawman main enforcement of the HKMA, which performs the relation of a cardinal bank, elaborated:

Although determination mightiness not beryllium an imminent usage lawsuit for e-HKD, taking into relationship the findings of our survey and the feedback from marketplace consultation and planetary development, the HKMA volition commencement paving the mode for e-HKD implementation and volition proceed toward a motorboat of e-HKD successful the future.

The high-ranking authoritative besides noted that galore jurisdictions are already exploring the motorboat of CBDCs. Participants successful the consultations held by the banking authorization expressed their concerns that Hong Kong is lagging down and needs to drawback up with the planetary trend.

The trials volition impact selected banks, outgo providers, and tech firms. These entities volition analyse the usage of the integer currency among their employees and a tiny fig of clients, Lee detailed. “The intent of introducing the e-HKD is to supply much prime for the customer,” the lawman CEO added. He besides emphasized that the determination volition not impact Hong Kong’s 3 note-issuing banks.

HKMA to Set Timeline for e-HKD Launch After Tests

Following the aviator phase, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority volition acceptable the timeline for launching the e-HKD, said Colin Pou, enforcement manager for fiscal infrastructure astatine the HKMA. The regulator archetypal announced the CBDC program successful June 2021, arsenic portion of the Fintech 2025 strategy. A achromatic insubstantial was issued successful October and the consultations ended successful May.

Dozens of cardinal banks astir the satellite person been studying integer currencies and taking steps to make their own. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has been moving aviator programs for its integer yuan (e-CNY) successful a fig of cities and precocious announced the enlargement of the aviator country successful 4 of them to the state level.

Hong Kong has besides conducted small-scale tests with the e-CNY this year, Howard Lee revealed earlier this month. Last summer, the region’s fiscal authorities said they volition nexus the integer yuan to its home payments system. Besides its practice with the PBOC, the HKMA has been besides moving with the cardinal banks of Thailand and the United Arab Emirates connected cross-border CBDC payments.

Do you expect Hong Kong to drawback up with mainland China successful its integer currency project? Tell america successful the comments conception below.

View source