The Bank of Spain is reportedly considering suggestions for a Wholesale CBDC initiative, according to Coindesk. The period for proposals for various “financial institutions and technological service providers” is scheduled to start on January 31, 2023.
According to a formal statement, the Spanish central bank published a request for proposals on Monday in an effort to launch a Wholesale Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) project. The announcement mentioned the program’s intention to mimic the flow of money for a wholesale CBDC.
According to the news, Spain will now be the nation to launch a wholesale CBDC program. The official statement also stated that it wanted to “experiment with the integration of a wholesale CBDC with the settlement of financial assets and to examine the prospective benefits and drawbacks of its implementation.”
Companies interested in submitting a proposal have until the specified date of January 31, 2023. Furthermore, the Coindesk study claimed that the wholesale CBDC initiative in Spain is “not tied” to research being done in the European Union.
The potential retail CBDC, often known as the digital euro, is being studied by the EU. In a subsequent report, the French central bank announced an initiative in September that aims to “achieve benefits of CBDCs applied at a wholesale level.”
Who has access determines whether CBDC is sold wholesale or retail. Every private sector and financial consumer has access to retail, or a general-purpose CBDC. On the other hand, wholesale CBDC is created with limited access by financial sectors.
