Republic of Palau Partners With Ripple on National Digital Currency
- Ripple will help the nation explore a USD-backed stablecoin on the XRP Ledger, which could provide a good alternative to a CBDC.
- The company said we could see the “implementation of the world’s first government-backed national stablecoin” as soon as the first half of 2022.
Aerial View of the City of Koror (Palau, Micronesia). Shutterstock
Global payments network Ripple has partnered with the Republic of Palau, an island nation in the western Pacific, to help it develop its own digital currency, the company said in a press release on 23 November.
According to the announcement, the partnership will initially focus on developing strategies for cross-border payments and a digital currency that could be a good alternative to a central bank digital currency (CBDC). Ripple intends to explore a USD-backed stablecoin — and associated use cases, such as a corporate registry — on its own decentralized public blockchain, the XRP Ledger.
The company noted that this collaboration could see the “implementation of the world’s first government-backed national stablecoin” as soon as the first half of next year. In order to help the citizens of Palau gain “greater financial access”, Ripple will provide the project with technical, business, design, and policy support.
One of the reasons behind the Republic of Palau‘s decision to partner with Ripple was the company’s XRP Ledger, which claims to be carbon-neutral and 120,000x more energy-efficient than proof-of-work (PoW) blockchains. The VP of Central Bank Engagements at Ripple, James Wallis, said in a statement:
“We are excited to be working with Palau to achieve its financial and climate-related goals. We have a wonderful opportunity to bring together our technology and experience with the unique characteristics of Palau to make a real economic and social impact for the country.”
- The head of China’s central bank digital currency institute said the e-CNY has undergone a major upgrade, and should be made available as an option in all retail scenarios.
- The PBOC official noted that platforms can integrate the CBDC in the short term using QR codes, and focus on upgrading their payment tools in the long run.
Office building of the People’s Bank of China. Flickr
- A federal judge ruled that the sale of XRP through exchanges and algorithms did not qualify as selling securities, which could have a major impact on several SEC lawsuits.
- The institutional sale of the token, however, did violate federal securities laws, and the lawsuit between the SEC and Ripple will have to go to trial.
- The current governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, announced he is joining the race for the 47th president of the U.S. during a Twitter Spaces event on Wednesday.
- During his speech DeSantis declared his support for Bitcoin and the wider crypto space, noting that if Joe Biden is re-elected “they’ll probably end up killing it”.