In preparation for the digital economy, and for improvement in the country’s financial system, the Jamaican senate has paved the way for the Central Bank of Jamaica to roll-out the central bank digital currency (CBDC), a digital currency to be launched later this month as legal tender.
In the senate sitting, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Leader of Government Business in the Upper Chamber, Kamina Johnson Smith, who piloted the bill posited that full CBDC implementation will hopefully help to reduce the country’s traditional challenges associated with many Jamaica citizens, especially those with no bank account.
“The main reasons given include not enough money [as] they feel you have to have [a significant sum of] money in order to have a bank account… [or] they don’t have the documentation required,” she said, noting that Government is dealing with the issue of lack of documentation through the rollout of the National Identification System (NIDS).
The pilot to Jamaica Digital Exchange (Jam-Dex) began in August 2021, and now, Jamaica has written a history no nation has with their names as this is the first time a country will pass this type of legislation. The new legislation expands the meaning of legal tender to include digital currencies, coins, as well as notes.
“Legislators in Jamaica have all now unanimously moved a digital dollar forward in Jamaica,” said Jonathan Dharmapalan, CEO of eCurrency, which provides technology for central banks to issue and distribute CBDCs. “You can use this to settle any debt in Jamaica. It is the medium of exchange. It is the medium of account.”
According to Dharmapalan, the success of the pilot proved Jam-Dex’s underlying technology and infrastructure works, but citizens being able to use the digital currency in the real world soon will actually demonstrate the true value of CBDCs
“What is primarily important is that countries start to recognize that their money can come in digital form,” he said. “Because it’s digital, you don’t have to be in the same place at the same time to execute a transaction…It’s a really, really powerful tool.”
Dear readers, do not miss this great opportunity before the promo expires;
Become a member of our Paradise VIP family; with our Binance, Kucoin, and Bybit VIP, you can get life-changing access to knowledge and information in the cryptocurrency trading space with exclusive trading signals and precise trading strategies to maximize your market positions; use our coupon code PRO20% for a massive 20% discount on your premium membership purchase (Hurry up as this offer is expiring soon); Join our telegram channels for free trading signals today;
- My Binance Paradise – https://t.me/MCP_binance
- My KuCoin Paradise – https://t.me/MCP_KuCoin
More countries exploring CBDCs
While Jamaica is the first country to make CBDCs parallel to fiat currency, quite a lot of countries have been researching the pros and cons of the technology, for instance, Brazil, Nigeria and Haiti are among the countries exploring the establishment or expansion of CBDCs. In 2020, Bahamas’ Sand Dollar became the world’s first CBDC.
Earlier this year, Singapore and Cambodia also announced their CBDCs exploration.
As earlier reported by MyCryptoParadise, the US Federal Reserve are also considering CBDC for improvement in the existing payment system
