European Central Bank could launch its digital currency within 4 years, says Christine Lagarde

Charles Abuede

The President of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, has said her institution could launch a digital currency within the next four years (2025) if her fellow policy makers grant the project the support and green light this summer.

Lagarde, who made this revelation during a monitored interview on Wednesday said: “We need to make sure that we do it right – we owe it to the Europeans. The whole process – let’s be realistic about it will in my view take another four years, maybe a little more.”

She also revealed that the second decision of whether to roll out a digital currency or not will be made six months to a year after that following the due process for the potential launch of a digital currency by the central bank.

According to the former International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief on Wednesday, the ECB is about to release an analysis of the 8,000 responses it received as part of a public consultation process on the potential launch of a central bank digital currency, and citing that the responses will be sent to the European Parliament and then the ECB’s decision-making Governing Council will decide in the middle of this year whether to move forward with its practical experimentation.

 “It’s a technical endeavour as well as a fundamental change,” Lagarde said. “We need to make sure that we’re not going to break any system, but to enhance the system. Cash will also continue to be available,” she added.

Christine Lagarde also said she will keep a close watch on the recent roll out of a digital currency by the Bahamas, which they called the Sand Dollar.