Governor of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ), John Mangudya has revealed that the central bank has a roadmap for the anticipated central bank digital currency (CBDC). This announcement comes after the bank revealed its intention to investigate the feasibility of introducing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) nearly six months ago.
He asserted that the bank’s development of the roadmap is in line with the Government’s decision on the CBDC which was made last year.
Mangudya did, however, emphasize while launching the second monetary policy statement of this year, that the RBZ is now open to hearing stakeholders’ opinions. He stated,
“The role of stakeholders in the CBDC journey is paramount and in that regard, the Bank has developed a public consultation paper on CBDC to be released soon. The consultation paper is aimed at fostering a broad and transparent public dialogue regarding the potential benefits and risks of CBDC.”
The RBZ states that after the document is made available to the general public, people will have an opportunity to give feedback on the consultation paper. Mangudya also pointed out that this must be done within 90 days after the release of the consultation paper.
In addition to the consultation document, the RBZ will conduct consumer perception studies about CBDCs. The central bank says that the findings from the two undertakings will enable it to engage in pilot programs related to CBDC.
The RBZ governor also noted that Lloyd Crowd Funding and Uhuru Innovative Solutions had been accepted into the fintech regulatory sandbox. Of these two, Lloyd Crowd Funding has already commenced its sandbox operations that will run until 2023 while Uhuru Innovative Solutions already started in May this year.
According to Mangudya, the admission of the two startups and the initiation of regulatory testing is a signal of the Bank’s commitment to promoting responsible innovation.
The findings of the regulatory testing are also anticipated to provide the RBZ with vital information for developing a suitable regulatory framework for financial technology in the country.