Israel and Hong Kong complete testing of retail CBDCs with emphasis on privacy and inclusiveness

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Bank of Israel and the Bank for International Settlements have joined forces to resolve complex CBDC issues .

News Join us on social media

The Bank for International Settlements and the central banks of Hong Kong and Israel released the results of the Sela project on September 12. The project was a public-private partnership that used private intermediaries to create a retail central bank digital currency (rCBDC). ) combining the desirable characteristics of cash and the benefits of digitalization.

The project leveraged the diverse experience of central banks to incorporate a number of predefined features in policy, security, technology and law. Private participants were fintechs FIS and M10 Networks, which provided core products, Clifford Chance for legal analysis and Check Point Software Technologies for cybersecurity. The project was a proof of concept.

The Sela project offers a new financial infrastructure, the Access Enabler, which facilitates customer-facing activities without ever holding users' rCBDC . This removes complexity, cost and risk compared to current payment providers #BISInnovationHub @hkmagovhk https://t.co/znVp81gQol pic.twitter.com/hItQamQc0K

– Bank for International Settlements (@BIS_org) September 12, 2023

In the Sela ecosystem, the central bank that issues an rCBDC maintains its ledger with pseudo-anonymous end-user accounts and ensures instant settlement with a Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system. ). Financing institutions manage user accounts and convert rCBDC into bank deposits and cash. An intermediary called an access facilitator manages all customer-facing services, including Know Your Customer compliance, endorsements and routing, while end users maintain control over...