Banque de France’s First Deputy Governor, Denis Beau, recently highlighted the transformative potential of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) in reshaping the international monetary system. Beau’s remarks, delivered on October 3, underscored the importance of CBDCs in enhancing cross-border payments.
Beau emphasized the urgency of addressing cross-border issues from the beginning rather than as an afterthought. Consequently, he outlined two primary pathways for CBDC development. The first involves creating common standards that ensure seamless interoperability between wholesale CBDCs and existing financial systems.
Additionally, he pointed to the approach championed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). This strategy focuses on the creation of regional or global CBDC platforms. Standardized wholesale CBDCs could be directly exchanged on these platforms, facilitating payment versus payment and delivery versus payment transactions.
Moreover, Beau referenced the success of Project Mariana. This initiative, a collaboration between the Banque de France, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, and the Swiss National Bank, delved into the potential of an automated market maker (AMM). Significantly, the project concluded in late September, marking a milestone in CBDC research.
However, Beau’s insights weren’t limited to CBDCs alone. He touched upon the broader theme of financial tokenization. In his view, the public sector is pivotal in bolstering the private sector. By doing so, it can harness the full potential of blockchain technology while minimizing associated risks. Beau firmly believes that tokenized central bank money and tokenized assets coexist harmoniously, acting as allies rather than adversaries.
