IncollaborationwithAccenture ModernizingFinancialMarketswithWholesaleCentralBankDigitalCurrency(wCBDC) INSIGHTREPORTAPRIL2024 Contents Foreword03 Preface04 Executivesummary05 Introduction06 1Foundationalkeyconcepts07 2Wholesalefinancialmarketsusecases10 3Thedigitalmoneycontinuum12 4wCBDCinitiatives16 5Industrychallenges19 6Areasofdifferentiatedvalue22 7Persistentindustrychallenges41 8Trade-offsandconsiderations58 9RTGSsystems62 10Alternativepaymentinstruments64 11Multi-tokenandmulti-systemfuture73 Conclusion75 Contributors76 Endnotes79 Thisreportisinteractive Lookoutforthisiconforpagesthatcanbeinteractedwith Toensureinteractivecapability,pleasedownloadandopenthisPDFwithAdobeAcrobat. Disclaimer ThisdocumentispublishedbytheWorldEconomicForumasacontributiontoaproject,insightarea orinteraction.Thefindings,interpretationsandconclusionsexpressedhereinarearesultofacollaborativeprocessfacilitatedandendorsedbytheWorldEconomicForumbutwhoseresultsdonotnecessarilyrepresenttheviewsoftheWorldEconomicForum,northeentiretyofitsMembers,Partnersorotherstakeholders. ©2024WorldEconomicForum.Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproducedortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeans,includingphotocopyingandrecording,orbyanyinformationstorageandretrievalsystem. Images:GettyImages,Midjourney,Unsplash ModernizingFinancialMarketswithWholesaleCentralBankDigitalCurrency Contents2 Foreword DrewPropson Head,TechnologyandInnovationinFinancialServices,WorldEconomicForum DavidTreat SeniorManagingDirector,InnovationIncubationGroupLead,Accenture Over98%oftheglobaleconomy’scentral banksareresearching,experimenting,pilotingordeployingcentralbankdigitalcurrency(CBDC)todeterminehowtomodernizethecapabilitiesofandimproveaccesstocentralbankmoney(CeBM).1Anopportunityexiststomakeuse ofongoinginnovationsinCeBMtomodernizewholesalefinancialmarketsbyenhancingsystemicallyimportantpaymentsbetweeninstitutions.Thesemarketsdemandsecureandefficientsettlementinfrastructurefrom participantstopromotefinancialstability,enabledomesticandinternationaltrade,andcreateeconomicopportunities. Centralbanksaremodernizingreal-timegrosssettlement(RTGS)systems–thepredominantwholesalefundstransfersystem–andwholesaleCBDC(wCBDC)representsanopportunity toaddressexistingandemergingindustry challengesacrossinterbankpaymentsandsecuritiestransactions.Meanwhile,non-CBDCpaymentinstrumentsarearrivingonthescene –reserves-backeddigitalcurrencies(RBDCs),deposittokens(DTs)andfiat-backedstablecoins(FBSs).Theseinstrumentsarecontinuallychallengingourcollectiveviewofdigitalmoney. Withthisbackdropandarecentsurveyfindingthattherecouldbe24liveCBDCsby2030,theimportanceofclarifyingtheroleofCeBMandwCBDCinthenextgenerationofwholesalefinancialmarketsisunderscored,andthisreportintendstodeliveruponthatgoal.2Centralbanks,commercialbanksandfinancialmarketinfrastructures(FMIs)likecustodians,depositoryinstitutions,exchanges,clearinghousesandsettlementagentsseektobetterunderstandwCBDC’svalueproposition. Inthiscontext,theWorldEconomicForumhascollaboratedwithAccenturetoarticulatehowawCBDCmightprovidedifferentiatedvalue.Wetookaholisticviewoftherelevant industrychallengestoproducepracticalinsightsforpolicy-makersandtheprivatesector’splanningeffortstorealizethefullpotentialofwCBDC,ifpursued.Importantly,deeppublic-privatesectorcollaborationisnecessarytomodernizewholesalefinancialmarketssecurelyandefficiently. 98% 24 ofglobalcentralbanksareexploringCBDCtoenhanceCeBMaccessandmodernization. CBDC liveCBDCsareprojectedby2030,underscoringtheneedtodefineCeBMandwCBDC’srolesinfuturewholesalefinancialmarkets. wCBDCrepresentsanopportunitytoaddresschallengesininterbankpaymentsandsecurities. ModernizingFinancialMarketswithWholesaleCentralBankDigitalCurrency Contents3 Preface Thefinancialsectorisontheprecipiceofthenextphaseofwholesalecentralbankdigitalcurrency(wCBDC).Inlate2023,Switzerlandsawthefirst-everlivewCBDCissuedtosettleadigitalbondtransactionaspartofalimited-phasepilot.InAsiaandtheMiddleEast,ProjectmBridgeisredefiningcross-borderpaymentsusingwCBDCbyexpandingitsobservingmembersto25centralbanksand institutionsaheadofitsminimumviableproductlaunchthisyear.TheEuropeanCentralBank(ECB)hasalsobeguntestingwCBDCondistributedledgertechnologyforsecuritiesandforeignexchangetransactions.TheBankforInternationalSettlements(BIS)generalmanager,AgustínCarstens,statedthatwCBDCshouldbe“takenforgranted”,notingitsexpectedbroadadoption.3Withmorethan200centralbanks,over130regulatedfinancialmarketinfrastructures(FMIs)andalargeproportion ofeconomicactivitythatreliesonwholesalefinancialmarkets,thequestionofwCBDC’svaluepropositioncomestotheforefront. WhilewCBDCsarealreadybeingusedinlimitedcases,wCBDCsystemsarestillanewconcept.ThebroadavailabilityofwCBDCsystemswilldependonpolicychoicesfocusedonfinancialstabilityandsafeandsoundmarketpractices. ThelegalandregulatoryelementsthatwillgovernthepossibilityofwidespreaduseofwCBDChaveanunknowntimeframe.Thus,private-sectorsolutionsmaygrowalongsidewCBDCdevelopment,andtheoutcomeofregulationswillinfluencethefut