BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 21
By Maryana Akhmedova – Trend:
Georgia’s digital currency project by the National Bank of Georgia (NBG) might replace regular financial operations, and, thereby, simplify the process, Davit Kikvidze, the Head of the Fintech Association, said, Trend reports via Georgian media.
“Digital currency project should replace the classic model of the financial system. These operations increase various costs, cyber security risk and make customers dependent on financial institutions,” Kikvidze said.
“The digital Georgian lari will be a lever for the National Bank in terms of monetary policy implementation and it will no longer need banks to have some impact on aggregate demand for money,” he added.
No matter how digital currency develops, it will not be possible to replace the regular currency completely, although, banks might also switch to digital currency, Kikvidze noted.
Meanwhile, the NBG plans to put digital Georgian lari project in a test mode in the second half of this year, Papuna Lezhava, the Vice President of the NBG said.
At this stage, the NBG is looking for a partner company. The tender will be announced after determining the scale and format of the project, Lezhava said.
“The technology will most likely be blockchain-based. We want the project to have a commercial character, so all parties will have an interest in developing the project and converting to digital currency at a later stage,” he added.
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