Representatives of the central banks of Singapore and Cambodia said that the popularity of cryptocurrencies among young people is pushing regulators to encourage state-owned digital currencies.
At an event titled “China Conference: Southeast Asia,” representatives from the two countries’ central banks said they were interested in issuing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). This was reported by the South China Morning Post.
Central banks are motivated by the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies among young people. Representatives of the regulators emphasized that in recent years, Southeast Asia has seen an evolution of electronic payments, commerce and digital currencies.
The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) aims to expand the adoption of the digital currency of the state payment system Bakong through the development of online trading and the cryptocurrency industry. NBC plans to further promote its de-dollarization program with its own digital currency.
According to Benedicte Nolens, head of the Hong Kong Innovation Center of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), Southeast Asia has always been a fertile ground for innovation in digital payments.
Frederick Fung, chairman of the Association of Cryptocurrency Enterprises and Startups in Singapore, argues that in addition to growing interest from young people, the country has seen an overall increase in the adoption of digital currencies. According to him, the older generation is not far behind the younger one and is also involved in trading crypto assets.
In 2018, the government of Cambodia, amid the launch of the state digital currency, banned financial institutions from working with any other cryptocurrencies.
