Marshall Islands To Host its CBDC on Algorand Blockchain

The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) has chosen blockchain startup Algorand as tech associate for its national cryptocurrency.

Back in February 2018, after making an announcement regarding its intended cryptocurrency, the Marshallese Sovereign (SOV), the Marshall Islands has moved a step forward in the creation by collaborating with top blockchain startup Algorand.

As per a March 2 news release, SFB Technologies, the enterprise that creates SOV’s blockchain framework, disclosed that the Marshallese digital currency will be on the basis of Algorand technology.

The Algorand covenant will be adopted to offer the Marshallese sovereign endeavor with quickness, mass scale, safety and also necessary compliance mechanisms such as identity handling and compliance software.

Algorand, in its statement, has mentioned that the SOV will be available on market along with the US dollar, which is utilized as the official currency in Marshall Islands, and assist the country function in an efficient manner in the worldwide economy.

The national digital currency endeavor will be overseen by the RMI government, while the SOV supply will be algo controlled to increase at 4% every year with an aim to avoid inflation.

In accordance with earlier reports, the announcement cites that the SOV will be disbursed through token pre-sale. In particular, the national cryptocurrency will be launched via a series of tenders within the framework of a scheduled rollout, which is anticipated to begin this year.

Kenneth Kedi, RMI Parliament speaker, gave optimistic point of view on the latest tech collaboration, asserting that the inclusion of Algorand invigorates the team backing the SOV venture and also the advancement of financial services sector in the country.

As per the announcement, the Marshallese SOV claims to be the “world’s first national digital currency” as the coin will depict a sovereign currency exchanging hands along with the greenback.

Contrary to ventures such as Bahamian central bank digital currency (CBDC), referred to as Project Sand Dollar, the Marshallese SOV will not be only a reflection of the domestic fiat currency, but instead an independent coin, a venture spokesperson detailed.

The news has come at a time when fresh studies by the Bank for International Settlements asserting that not even one of the 17 international CBDC ventures examined by the BIS is centered on paving way for cross-border payments.