The Reserve Bank of Australia sets foot in the CBDCs scene, via deep-diving into use cases for a nation-wide CBDC. 

Specifically, the entity aims for a partnership with the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre (DFCRC) on a respective research project. 

The collaborative effort of the Reserve Bank and DFCRC will reportedly concentrate on “innovative use cases and business models”, which are potentially assisted by the issuance of a CBDC. Assessments for the technological, legal and regulatory considerations will also be carried out in the initiative’s course.

The pilot will approximately run for twelve months, and assume the form of the CBDC functioning in a ring-fenced environment. Industry stakeholders will receive invitations to build particular use cases, which The Bank and the DFCRC will then evaluate. 

The selected cases will participate in the pilot, resulting in a special report.

The Reserve Bank shares intentions of publishing the paper with additional specifics regarding the initiative within the next few months. 

“This project is an important next step in our research on CBDC. We are looking forward to engaging with a wide range of industry participants to better understand the potential benefits a CBDC could bring to Australia.” Michele Bullock, the deputy governor of the Reserve Bank, reportedly remarked. 

The DFCRC reportedly operates as a $180 million research program, financially supported by industry partners, universities and the Australian Government, with a primary target of bringing together stakeholders in the finance sector, academia and regulatory spheres to work on the opportunities arising from the next transformation of financial markets. 

The Bank of Thailand reportedly also disclosed details related to the two-year trial phase for retail CBDC testing, which should begin by the end of 2022.