The Bank of Tanzania is apparently planning to introduce a central bank digital currency, or CBDC, for the African nation after neighboring countries announced similar initiatives.
According to a news story from Bloomberg Friday, the governor of the Bank of Tanzania, Florens Luoga, said Thursday that Tanzania was planning to follow Nigeria’s example with the implementation of its own CBDC. Luoga would have said that the central bank “The preparations have already started” for a digital shilling, the currency of Tanzania since 1966.
In preparing to launch a CBDC, the Governor said that Tanzania also plans to expand research on digital currencies and strengthen the capacity of central bank officials. If successful, Tanzania will be part of a select group of countries that are considering launching a CBDC.
Many industry insiders see China leading the upcoming CBDC launch from a large global economy. The country’s central bank has conducted tests in major cities since April 2020 and plans a larger test at the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022.
According to Luoga, The Tanzanian central bank initiative was spurred by Nigeria’s launch of its own CBDC, the eNaira, last month. The CBDC is only the second to be fully available to the public after the Bahamas became the world’s first nation to launch a central bank digital currency in October 2020.
Cryptocurrencies are widely banned in Tanzania following a November 2019 guideline from the country’s central bank that said digital assets were not recognized by local law. However, the Bank of Tanzania is working to revoke this ban after President Samia Suluhu Hassan said in June that the country should prepare for cryptocurrencies.
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