The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has published a research paper exploring the merits of a retail central bank digital currency (CBDC), focusing on the extent to which consumers would value having access to a digital form of money that is “even safer and potentially more private” than commercial bank deposits.
The paper, titled Valuing Safety and Privacy in Retail Central Bank Digital Currency, contains the results of research on a selected group of consumers to learn how much they are willing to pay for added safety and privacy characteristics of a CBDC.
According to the RBA, the results suggest
the average consumer attaches no value to the added safety of a CBDC.
On the other hand, an average consumer may a CBDC’s privacy benefits:
Privacy settings of a CBDC, which can take various forms, look more consequential for the CBDC value proposition.
According to the RBA, consumer’s lack of interest in added safety is unsurprising, as
This is consistent with bank deposits in Australia already being perceived as a safe form of money, and physical cash issued by the Reserve Bank of Australia continuing to be available as an alternative option.
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