Qatar Central Bank is exploring the possibility of a central bank digital currency

Digital assets are witnessing unprecedented growth across the globe. No one will be left behind, with Qatar also getting ready to join the revolution of digital assets. The Central Bank of Qatar is striving to enter the world of digital assets to digitize every transaction that takes place in the country. A Qatar Central Bank (QCB) official said the bank is now researching digital bank licensing and digital currencies. According to Alnood Abdullah Al Mufta, head of the bank’s fintech division, the study will help the QCB gain a better knowledge of what its focus area should be.

QCB will also assess whether Qatar can launch a central bank digital currency (CBDC). A report in the English language daily, peninsulaAl Mufta is quoted as saying that the study will look at various aspects and areas of fintech, and will also examine whether a CBDC is feasible for Qatar.

He said the way would be cleared in the next few months. Right now, the bank is researching different elements and verticals of fintech and trying to figure out where they want to go. Over the next few months, there will be a better understanding of QCB’s future focus.

She further said that they see that the market is moving towards digital currency, but added that whether or not they will have a digital currency is still being researched.

Dukhan Bank, a private Qatari bank, was looking at the possibility of setting up a digital bank in the country. The same report quoted Narayanan Srinivasan, chief operating and digital officer of Dukhan Bank, as saying that his institution was considering setting up a digital bank in Qatar, but added that they were “still at the thinking stage”.

While private cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin are extremely popular, government-backed CBDCs, often viewed as the opposite of such cryptocurrencies, are rapidly growing in popularity.

a CBDC A country’s fiat currency is in digital form and is managed by the country’s central bank. By March 2022, 87 countries Were considering issuing CDBC.