Philippines to launch its CBDC currency by 2029

With the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) capabilities currently being analyzed and tested in the state, the Philippines is accelerating efforts to launch its CBDC project by 2029.

Deputy Governor at Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Mamerto Tangonan affirmed that BSP intends to initiate its CBDC project within the six-year term of current bank Governor Eli Remolona Jr., who became governor of the Philippines central bank in 2023. Speaking at a press conference, Tangonan added in a statement,

The governor is very early in his term and we’re already about to conclude proof of concept. This is an innovative payment instrument. In fact there’s no central bank in the world that has already launched wholesale CBDC, with the exception of the Swiss National Bank,

Philippines’ CBDC project nears completion of second phase

Tangonan uncovered the current state of the country’s CBDC project, which they named the Agila Project. He said that BSP is nearing the completion of its second phase, proof-of-concept. BSP completed the first phase of the pilot program in July last year. BSP, alongside its partners, agreed to opt for Hyperledger Fabric as the project’s distributed ledger technology.

Considering the global interaction with the national fiat-pegged cryptocurrency, the Philippines initially launched its pilot project in December 2022. First named CBDCPH, the project started to explore CBDC technology and understand how it can foster advancements in the extensive payments network. Later in Sept. 2023, the BSP rebranded it to Agile Project to explore more use cases, including cross-border payments, interbank settlements, and securities.

The BSP has joined hands with seven initial financial participants who will issue wholesale CBDCs for the above settlements. These participants include Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation, C Land Bank of the Philippines, BDO Unibank Inc., Union Bank of the Philippines, Maya Philippines Inc., and Hina Banking Corp. BSP ensures that the project sees an uptick following its launch. “Otherwise, you create a white elephant,” Tangonan said.

Moreover, reports on Agile’s sandbox experiment test will appear by the end of this year, confirmed Bridget Rose Mesina-Romero, director at BSP’s Payments Policy and Development Department. She further explained that once the project testing ends, the authority will publish thorough reports showing all that experts found and assessed via sandbox experiments.