Launched in late 2020, Cambodia’s digital money project Bakong reached
200,000 users in June, doubling from three months earlier.
The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) continues progressing with its
central bank digital currency- (CBDC)-like initiative known as Bakong,
disclosing several project milestones.
NBC’s director general and
the Bakong project lead Chea Serey said in a Wednesday interview with
The Nikkei that Bakong’s electronic wallet reached
200,000 users in June, doubling from three months earlier. Based on
blockchain technology, the Bakong payment and money transfer service was
originally launched by the NBC in October 2020.
The
digital money project has amassed nearly six million users in the first
half of 2021, including those reached indirectly through member bank
mobile apps, recording a total of 1.4 million transactions worth nearly
$500 million, Serey noted.
The official disclosed that the NBC is
currently exploring cross-border transactions through Bakong, closely
working with Thailand’s central bank and Malaysia’s largest bank,
Maybank. Serey explained that the cross-border Bakong transactions would
provide Cambodian people in foreign countries with a “safe and
efficient way to send money to their families.” She noted that the new
payment method would be beneficial for many Cambodian women migrating to
Malaysia.
Serey also reportedly said that Bakong’s launch has
significantly increased the use of Cambodia’s national currency riel,
which is part of the country's dual-currency system alongside the United
States dollar. However, the digital money project alone will not be
able to switch Cambodia from a U.S. dollar-based economy to the riel,
she added.
“There are other policies that need to be in place,
like having a stable exchange rate and inflation rate,” Serey stated,
concluding that the mission of Bakong is to “increase the usage of the
local currency,” with the long-term goal to “solely use” the country’s
local currency. According to data by Wall Street Journal, the U.S.
dollar is currently used for 90% of financial transactions in Cambodia.
Related: France and Singapore pilot cross-border CBDC transactions
Additionally, the NBC director general expressed a skeptical stance on Bitcoin (BTC),
the world’s most-valued cryptocurrency. Serey said that the crypto
industry needs regulation and consumer protection measures to avoid the
consequences of volatile prices, stating: “There are no fundamentals,
and if you were to allow investors to go into this, who is going to take
responsibility when the price crashes?”
Developed by NBC in
collaboration with Japanese blockchain technology company Soramitsu,
Bakong allows Cambodian citizens to pay at stores or send money through a
mobile app, supporting settlements and remittances in riel or U.S.
dollar. At the project’s launch, Serey emphasized that Bakong should not
be referred to as a CBDC but rather a payment and money transfer
service.
source link : https://cointelegraph.com/news/cambodia-explores-cross-border-transactions-of-cbdc-like-bakong
