It is an ambitious goal that the East-Caribbean monetary union has taken in view for the coming years. By 2021, the eight island states want to reduce their cash use by half, thus boosting the economy.
In order for this to succeed, the joint central bank of the archipelago ECCB is now turning its backs to unspoilt banks. As announced by the Money Authority on March 7, on its website, will in the future complement a specially developed cryptocurrency the East Caribbean EC dollar.
More partnerships
For this purpose, the joint organization of the island states, at the end of February, entered into a partnership with Barbts-based fintech company Bitt. Together they want to develop and test the digital payment alternative in the coming months.
After extensive basic research in the area of state cryptocurrencies has already been undertaken worldwide, the East Caribbean Union now wants to follow action and be the first of its kind to issue such a central bank coin.
This is not a theoretical exercise. The digital dollar will not only become the world’s first legal digital currency of a central bank. At the same time, the pilot project is testing the use of this currency with the possibility of using it publicly. This could become the game changer for our economy,
Cryptocurrencies as a driving force: Marshall Islands show it off
First of all, we want to put the currency to the test in several countries. If the digital EC-dollar proves its worth, it could then be open to all residents of the Eastern Caribbean.
In the future, for example, transfers between the island dwarves St. Lucia and St. Vincent should be possible directly from the smartphone. This should benefit not only the economy, but also the quality of life of the approximately 630,000 inhabitants of the archipelago, says Bitt CEO Rawdon Adams.
However, the East Caribbean is not alone in the race for the first state cryptocurrency
Contrary to the concerns of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Marshall Islands are currently preparing another group of islands to issue their own cryptocurrency, the Sovereign. This is intended to complement the US dollars used in the Pacific Islands digitally and thus drive the economy. In turn, the IMF warned last September about Sovereign’s possible economic risks.
About crypto-tokens
Apart from state currencies, however, American banks in particular made headlines with their own crypto-tokens. In February, JPM Coin celebrates the American bank J.P. Morgan its premiere. This should serve as a digital bridge for the most effective transactions in the issuance of securities. In turn, New York-based Signature Bank has reportedly used its own cryptocurrency since the beginning of the year to handle internal transactions.