The Bank of Japan (BOJ) revealed that it would start testing the feasibility of running its digital cryptocurrency.
The central bank is planning to create digital crypto in a bid to compete with China and other nations that have started testing their own central bank digital currency.
Japan alongside Britain, Canada, and some European countries revealed a collaborative effort to research digital currencies in February.
BOJ recons two technical challenges which are resilience and universal access. Universal access means the ability to ensure that the digital currency is accessible to all the citizens, including those that don’t have smartphones. Interestingly, 35% of Japan’s population don’t have smartphones.
Resilience, on the other hand, refers to the availability of the coin when there is no electricity. The BOJ emphasized that both hurdles must be crossed to ensure that the digital currency is accessible to everyone in any condition.
The BOJ is at a crossroad of choosing between centralized system and blockchain for the development of the CBDC. It is noted that both systems have advantages and disadvantages, highlighting that a centralized system is better for massive adoption.
Source: Cointelegraph
