• The deputy governor of the state bank of Pakistan has confirmed that a state-issued token is on its way
• The token is slated to be released by 2025
• The goal of the token is to fight corruption and create more inclusion

Most cryptocurrencies in the market are either decentralized or are created by private firms either for utility purposes such as Kin or for trading purposes. However, more discussion is being held about the idea of central bank-issued cryptocurrencies such as for the UAE. While some countries like the UAE might be looking into cryptocurrency for technological advancement purposes, there are instances of cryptos being created a means of combating economic crisis such as in Venezuela with the Petro.

It seems that one of the next countries to join Venezuela on the list of countries with central bank-issued cryptos is Pakistan as it was reported this week that Jameel Ahmad, the deputy governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), has announced that such a coin will be issued by 2025.

Transparency and financial inclusion

The news of the forthcoming token wasn’t made via a formal announcement but was instead brought up through another high-ranking Pakistani official. According to a local news source, Asad Umar, Pakistan’s finance minister, started the conversation about the topic during the recently-held Electronic Money Institutions (EMIs) Launch ceremony.

During the ceremony, Umar had apparently mentioned that the new EMIs should be equipped with proper cybersecurity. This was said to officials from the federal investigation agency and the central bank and Umar also mentioned that any breach of security in such a highly-publicized project could damage the reputation of the bank.

This prompted Ahmad to state that the central bank is already working on their own official digital currency and that the concept for the token will be launched in 2025. The actual token, however, will not be released until the year 2030.

The goal of this currency, he said, is to create an environment for financial inclusion and one that can help combat corruption

Future of Money

With all the various countries that are looking into creating their own central bank-issued tokens, it is interesting to see what the future of money will look like across the globe.

As the deputy governor pointed out, a system that makes use of a state cryptocurrency would be one that could prevent corruption significantly and also create more inclusion.