PANews reported on September 18 that according to Coindesk, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) (central bank) and the Ministry of Finance released a report summarizing the research on central bank digital currency (CBDC) so far and how these studies provide reference for the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Ministry of Finance's current assessment of Australia's CBDC issues. The report also lists a three-year roadmap for Australia's future digital currency work.
The Reserve Bank of Australia has said it will prioritize work on a wholesale central bank digital currency over a retail version. Brad Jones, RBA Assistant Governor for Financial Systems, pointed out in a statement that compared to the retail version of CBDC, wholesale CBDC shows more significant potential benefits and faces relatively few challenges. Wholesale CBDCs are digital tokens issued by central banks for use by banks and financial institutions, while retail CBDCs are aimed at consumers and daily transactions.
