Norway’s central bank says CBDC ‘not warranted,’ cites strong payment system

Norges Bank, Norway's central bank, announced that introducing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) is "not warranted at this time" because the country's current payment system is already secure, efficient, and low-cost. Governor Ida Wolden Bache stated that the need could change in the future, and the bank would be prepared to introduce a CBDC if necessary to maintain payment system efficiency. This decision follows years of experimentation with retail and wholesale CBDC models. Regarding wholesale CBDCs, the bank noted that while they could modernize interbank settlement, the benefits are unproven, and necessary mature IT standards do not yet exist. Norges Bank remains open to future collaboration, potentially exploring solutions developed by the Eurosystem, which is moving toward a potential digital euro issuance around 2029.

(Source：Cointelegraph)