Kina predlaže prekogranični sustav plaćanja digitalnim valutama

(Hina/EPA)

Središnje banke mogle bi izdati digitalne valute koje bi se koristile i u prekograničnom sustavu plaćanja, izjavio je u četvrtak čelnik instituta za digitalne valute pri kineskoj središnjoj banci.

Središnje banke moraju poduprijeti sustav malih plaćanja uslugama iz sustava digitalnih valuta koje će ponuditi na tržištu plaćanja, rekao je u četvrtak Mu Changchun na seminaru u organizaciji Banke za međunarodne namire (BIS).

Digitalne valute mogle bi ubrzati transakcije i smanjiti njihove troškove u domaćem i međunarodnom platnom sustavu, a središnje banke smatraju ih i alatom za modernizaciju financijskog sustava, tumači Reuters.

Njihova nastojanja ubrzala je i sve veća popularnost privatnih digitalnih valuta, poput bitcoina, koje bi mogle ugroziti njihovu kontrolu nad izdanjem novca.

Kina je najdalje otišla u planovima izdanja digitalne valute, u sklopu nastojanja da internacionalizira juan i smanji ovisnost o platnom sustavu kojim dominira američki dolar, ističe Reuters.

I Europska središnja banka (ECB) razmatra uvođenje digitalnog eura u idućih pet godina, no takvim planovima protivi se njemačka središnja banka Bundesbank, strahujući da bi mogao predstavljati rizik za banke.

Prihvaćanje digitalnih valuta u međunarodnoj trgovini i plaćanjima sve više uzima maha i moglo bi u konačnici ugroziti status dolara kao de facto valute svjetske trgovine i potkopati utjecaj SAD-a, mišljenja su mnogi analitičari.

Mu Changchun predložio je na seminaru BIS-a set globalnih pravila za digitalne valute koje bi izdavale središnje banke.

Sustavi digitalnih valuta koje bi uspostavile središnje banke trebali bi biti interoperabilni, sugerira Mu i dodaje da je kineska središnja banka razmijenila prijedloge s ostalim središnjim bankama i monetarnim vlastima.

"Protok informacija i novca trebao bi biti sinhroniziran kako bi se regulatorima olakšalo praćenje transakcija i provjera jesu li u skladu s pravilima" dodaje dužnosnik kineske središnje banke.

Naglasio je i načelo "pravedne ponude digitalnih valuta", pojasnivši da središnje banke ne bi smjele izdanjem digitalnih valuta ometati jedna drugu u obavljanju zadaće očuvanja monetarne i financijske stabilnosti.

Dodao je i da službene digitalne valute ne bi istisnule s tržišta digitalne platforme za plaćanja, napomenuvši da su platforme Alipay i WeChat Pay ključan dio kineske financijske infrastrukture.

"Ni papirnati novac ni e-novčanici neće nestati", poručio je.

LONDON, March 25 (Reuters) - China proposed a set of global rules for central bank digital currencies on Thursday, from how they can be used around the world to highly sensitive issues such as monitoring and information sharing.

Global central banks are looking at developing digital currencies to modernise their financial systems, ward off the threat from cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and speed up domestic and international payments. China is one of the most advanced in its effort.

Mu Changchun, the director-general of the PBOC's digital currency institute, laid out the new proposals at a Bank for International Settlements seminar.

"Interoperability should be enabled between CBDC (central bank digital currency) systems of different jurisdictions and exchange," he said. The PBOC had shared the proposals with other central banks and monetary authorities, he said.

"Information flow and fund flows should be synchronised so as to facilitate regulators to monitor the transactions for compliance."

As digital currencies such as bitcoin gain more traction with mainstream companies and investors, and as private efforts like the Facebook-backed Diem seek approval, the onus is on central banks to accelerate plans to issue digital cash to fend off threats to their control over money.

The PBOC is aiming to become the first major central bank to issue a CBDC, part of its push to internationalise the yuan and reduce dependence on the dollar-dominated payment system.

The European Central Bank is also exploring the introduction of a digital euro, within the next five years. It's running into opposition from Germany, though, where the Bundesbank worries that a digital euro could pose risks to banks.

A CBDC that gains wide acceptance in international trade and payments could ultimately erode the dollar's status as the de facto currency of world trade and undermine U.S. influence, many analysts say.

China said separately on Thursday it would quicken pilot programmes to develop its digital yuan, as it seeks to boost consumption to shore up economic growth.

Mu added that a key global rule should be a "fair supply of digital currencies" by world central banks to continue supporting the healthy evolution and financial stability of the international monetary system.

A "digital currency supplied by one central bank should not impede another central bank's ability to carry out its mandate for monetary and financial stability," he said.

UPDATE 1-Digital yuan could be back-up for mobile payment giants - PBOC

By Tom Wilson

LONDON, March 25 (Reuters) - Retail-focused central bank digital cash could provide a key backup for widely-used Chinese mobile payment methods such as Alipay and Tencent, the People's Bank of China's digital currency chief said on Thursday.

"To provide a backup or redundancy for the retail payment system, the central bank has to step up and provide CBDC services to the retail payment market," said Mu Changchun, the director-general of the PBOC's digital currency institute, at a Bank for International Settlements seminar.

Central banks across the world, including the PBOC, are looking at developing digital currencies that could play a role in making domestic and international payments faster and cheaper for both large-scale and consumer transactions.

Retail payment giants such as Ant Group's Alipay and Tencent's WeChat Pay have become key financial infrastructure for the country, Mu said, adding that any future digital yuan would exist alongside - and not replace - such payment methods.

"Paperback notes and e-wallets will not vanish," he said. "This process of this issuance of retail CBTC will be market-oriented approach, and they will co-exist and they will co cooperate in this retail payment system payment."