Switzerland's central bank will test the feasibility of a digital currency with its French counterpart, as well as an Accenture-led consortium of private sector banks.
The Swiss National Bank and Banque de France will explore the cross-border settlement of two wholesale central bank digital currencies – known as CBDCs – on blockchain, the SNB said in a statement on Thursday. It is enlisting a private sector consortium led by Accenture, including Credit Suisse, Natixis, R3, SIX's digital exchange the SDX, and UBS.
Specifically, the central banks will exchange a financial instrument against a euro wholesale CBDC via a delivery-versus-payment mechanism of settlement, as well as an
euro wholesale CBDC against a Swiss franc wholesale CBDC. The transactions will be settled between Swiss and French banks, the SNB said, as did the French counterpart in its own statement.
Cautiously Curious
This represents a widening of Project Helvetia which concluded in December. The SNB and SIX, Switzerland's stock-market operator, had studied the technical feasibility for CBDCs in the context of the Bank for International Settlements' innovation hub.
«It is essential for central banks to stay on top of technological developments,» SNB governor Andréa Maechler said in the statement. The central bank said the effort is exploratory, and «should not be interpreted as an indication that the Swiss National Bank or the Banque de France plan to issue wholesale CBDCs.»
Central Bank Advances
Banque de France deputy Sylvie Goulard said she is «convinced» there are potential benefits of a CBDC in providing security and efficiency in financial transactions. The G20 has pledged to improve cross-border payments, paving the way to exolore CBDCs.
The French and Swiss central banks have been somewhat more reticent that their international counterparts. Sweden is developing an e-krona for the general public, while China'a central bank has already started testing an e-yuan.
