Egypt plans to introduce its central bank digital currency (CDBC), the digital pound, by 2030.
Meanwhile, the country aims to improve its financial sector to achieve complete financial inclusion for all citizens in the next six years.
The details
- The recent plan stems from an economic research project sponsored by the Egyptian Council of Ministers.
- The project is tagged “The Document on the Most Important Strategic Directions of the Egyptian Economy of the New Presidential Period (2024-2030).”
- According to reports, the document outlines the Egyptian government’s priorities regarding its upcoming economic policies during the current political tenure, covering the next six years.
- Per the document, the country wants to launch the digital pound to increase the efficiency of its monetary policy and provide competition for its national currency, among other reasons.
Some background
- Late last year, a government official revealed that the Central Bank of Egypt was considering introducing a CBDC, the digital pound.
- According to the official, the digital pound is a virtual form of the Egyptian pound, and its goal is to improve transaction efficiency with a fully peer-to-peer payment means without intermediaries.
- He further indicated that while studies on the digital pound are moving in the right direction, the CBDC’s implementation could take some time.
Why this matters
- The International Monetary Fund advised that the level of planning required to develop and adopt a CBDC takes time, and as such, countries should be in no rush to launch digital currencies.
- While it gave no specific timeframe, the procedures highlighted by the global lender could take years to run through.
- Egypt joins a list of countries worldwide that have chosen a more measured and slow approach to launching a CBDC.
