eNaira: Nigeria among top countries leading digital currency adoption

Nigeria has been identified as one of the top three countries worldwide where Central Bank Digital Currency has gained significant traction.

According to a report released on Tuesday by the Atlantic Council, Nigeria, along with the Bahamas and Jamaica, will be among the few countries that have fully implemented a CBDC by September 2024.

Meanwhile, 44 other countries are in the pilot stage of their CBDC initiatives.

"In Nigeria and the Bahamas, CBDC issuance has increased substantially," according to the study.

Remember that the Central Bank of Nigeria launched its Central Bank Digital Currency, eNaira, in October 2021.

With the introduction of eNaira in October 2021, Nigeria became the first African country to introduce a Central Bank Digital Currency, and the second globally, following the Bahamas' introduction of the "Sand Dollar" in October 2020.

According to the report, 134 countries and currency unions, representing 98% of global GDP, are currently exploring Central Bank Digital Currencies.

"In May 2020, the number was only 35. According to the report, 66 countries are currently in the advanced stages of exploration, including development, piloting, and launch.

"There is a new high of 44 active CBDC pilots, including the digital euro. "European countries, both in the eurozone and elsewhere, are increasingly testing wholesale CBDCs, both domestically and internationally," it added.

The Atlantic Council also noted that all of the original BRICS member countries—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—are currently testing a Central Bank Digital Currency.

Since last year, the BRICS countries have been actively developing an alternative payment system to the dollar.

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