Making headway - Results of the 2022 BIS survey on central bank digital currencies and crypto

Most central banks are exploring central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and more than half of them are conducting concrete experiments or working on a pilot. This BIS paper summarises the findings of the latest survey of central banks on their views and plans regarding CBDCs. The responses from 86 central banks show that the proportion engaged in some form of CBDC work has risen to 93% and that the work on retail CBDC is more advanced than on wholesale CBDC. In addition, this paper shows that most central banks see potential value in having both a retail CBDC and a fast payment system, and that there could be 15 retail and nine wholesale CBDCs publicly circulating in 2030. The survey further shows that, to date, stablecoins and other cryptoassets are rarely used for payments outside the crypto ecosystem. 

JEL classification: E42, E58, O33 

Keywords: central bank digital currencies, CBDC, digital innovation, cryptoassets, financial inclusion, stablecoins, cross-border payments, interoperability, fast payment systems