In his statements to QNA, Assistant Governor for Financial Instruments and Payment Systems at Qatar Central Bank (QCB) Sheikh Ahmed bin Khalid Al-Thani discussed the goals of the digital currency project, which aims to explore, understand, and ensure the readiness of Qatars financial infrastructure for innovative technologies like central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). This initiative will facilitate both domestic and international transactions to digitalize. With most countries worldwide researching CBDCs, it represents approximately 98 percent of global GDP, he noted.
There is a great disparity in the level of progress achieved regarding the issuance of CBDCs, he highlighted. For QCB, studies on the impacts of issuing a digital currency have been completed. The next step involves experimenting with and simulating the effects of issuing this currency. The primary goal of this phase is to understand the impact of a digital currency on daily transactions between banks, which are inherently of high value and
have significant financial implications. The results of this experiment and its evaluation, expected by October this year, will inform further expansion and additional use cases, he said.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Khalid Al-Thani explained the types of digital currencies and QCBs stance on them, categorizing them into three recognized types that all use similar technology for instant money transfer. The first type is the central bank digital currency, which is issued by the central bank and backed by cash reserves, carrying a legal obligation on the central bank. The second type is stablecoins, issued by private companies, and the third type is cryptocurrencies. QCB has previously issued circulars prohibiting the trading of stablecoins and cryptocurrencies as they are not issued by a central bank.
Sheikh Ahmed Al-Thani underscored the importance of digitizing the financial sector as one of the main drivers of economic development, in line with Qatar National Vision 2030. He pointed out QCB’s active efforts to keep p
ace with developments in the field by developing expertise, conducting experiments, and adopting modern technology. This project is part of those efforts and is expected to positively impact Qatar’s economy by providing opportunities to develop and expand the financial sector and attract new participants.
Regarding the digital currency project’s future plans for its development and expansion to other countries, he mentioned that there are several existing projects between certain countries; however, QCB has not yet participated in any such projects but is closely monitoring developments. Expansion plans will be evaluated based on the results of the local experiment and ongoing international projects.
Concluding his statements, the Assistant Governor for Financial Instruments and Payment Systems at QCB affirmed that the launch of the digital currency project will bring numerous benefits to Qatars financial sector, stating that QCB focuses on exploring these matters and determining what is suitable for Qatars
economy. QCB also aims to adopt innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence and assess the possibility of integrating them within the financial sector to achieve the objectives of the Third Financial Sector Strategic Plan.
Source: Qatar News Agency
