Bahamas Sand Dollar could very well be the first-ever Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) of 2020. Sand Dollar pretty well suits the sun-kissed beaches that attract tourists from across the globe.
As per the official announcement of the Central Bank of Bahamas, Sand Dollar went live on 27 December 2019. The virtual currency will undergo a pilot phase testing in Exuma that will last for the first three months of 2020. It will help collect feedback on the virtual currency’s real-world performance and applications.
Bahamas Sand Dollar aims to streamline the tourism economy
The Bahamas Sand Dollar is pegged 1:1 to the Bahamian Dollar (BSD), which is, in turn, pegged 1:1 with the United States dollar. Thus, the Bahamas Sand Dollar is in a way co-related to the USD as well adding to its credibility factor.
The government of Bahamas says that the Bahamas Sand Dollar is aimed to streamline the local financial inclusion. It will help boost digital transactions in an increasingly globalised world and make them efficient. The tourism industry will also gain as the Bahamas Sand Dollar will cater to the new millennial who love to pay using cryptocurrencies.
In the pilot phase, the government wants to promote the currency as a tool for consumer protection. New regulatory frameworks will be developed that will help streamline its adoption and daily transactions. After the regulations and the guidelines phase, the Bahamas Sand Dollar will be available for the general retail use, companies and institutions.
There are thirty-one hundred (3100) islands in the Bahamas Archipelago. Financial inclusion of people across all these islands is a crucial goal for the government. Bahamas’ Abaco region recently faced the wrath of Hurricane Dorian. So, its use will also help benefit the local economy that needs desperate financial infrastructure repairs.
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