The Central Bank of France joins the CBDC fever. The entity will begin new pilot tests with the digital euro through the companies Accenture, HSBC, Societe Generale, LiquidShare and Seba Bank, which will participate in the tests where the new currency will be implemented.
Continuing with the planning of its 2020 experimental program, the Central Bank of France announced that will begin new pilot tests with the currency CBDC of the digital euro, where a total of 8 banking and financial, technological and services companies will be participating. blockchain, which were selected during the call made by the entity in the month of April. Let us remember that the Central Bank of France made an open call to all those companies and companies interested in applying their financial services to the new digital euro, calling for them to present innovative solutions for this. Thus, among all the companies that applied, a total of 8 companies were selected for the new implementations of the CBDC.
Among the candidates are globally recognized banking and technology services companies such as Accenture, HSBC y Societe Generale, as well as other small companies also in the technology and blockchain sector such as LiquidShare, Seba Bank, Euroclear, Iznes y ProsperUS.
With this new implementation, there is no doubt that the Bank of France is becoming a benchmark by significantly advancing an efficient strategy that allows the consolidation of the digital euro, with which it is expected to expand the presence of European banks in financial services. globally.
It may interest you: The Bank of Spain presents a report with arguments for the debate on a possible CBDC
Significant progress in tests with the digital euro
The first tests carried out by the Central Bank of France with the digital euro were during the month of May through the issuance of bonds in the form of Tokens of securities for an amount of 44 million dollars, which were settled in digital euros. These tests were carried out using a complete blockchain-based infrastructure that allowed the bank to solve several problems related to the management of financial securities.
Now, with the election of the 8 candidate companies, the Central Bank of France will be able to advance in the tests that implement the new currency, although at the moment it seems that digital euro transactions and movements are not planned.
For its part, the statement presented by the Central Bank of France states that among the objectives sought with the new tests with the digital euro are exploring new methods or forms of exchange of non-cryptographic financial instruments for central bank money. Likewise, the tests seek to analyze the central bank's digital money regulation to make efficient, fast and secure cross-border payments, in addition to reviewing all the aspects that these processes involve to ensure correct disposition of the bank's money.
The testing process with the selected companies will be carried out over the next few months, a time that the Central Bank estimates will be sufficient to analyze results, and to be able to explore the multiple possibilities that the implementation of a new currency will bring, such as the improvement in the operation of financial markets and interbank regulations. The latter indicate that the tests and studies being carried out by the entity are directed towards the implementation and wholesale use of the digital currency, and not for particular consumer purposes at the moment.
Expectations of the new tests
With the completion of the new tests with the digital euro, it is expected that the different selected companies will begin to implement the currency in different applications, which will allow the necessary tests to be carried out to explore the new financial instruments. At the end of each of the tests that will be carried out over the coming months, it is expected that the different companies will present a proposal on how to implement and give innovative and efficient use to the new currency.
Recently the Central Bank of France was elected as a representative of the Eurosystem before the World Bank for International Settlements, which together with the Central Bank of Germany, Deutsche Bundesbank, will be pioneers in establishing a new Innovation Center, which will have the potential to change and improve the current relationship that exists between central banks and society. This new innovation center will be based in each bank's respective locations, Paris and Frankfurt am Main.
Continue reading: The Central Bank of Japan is considering the creation of a CBDC currency for the digital yen
