Bank of Israel: The idea of ​​issuing a digital shekel met with public support

The Israeli Central Bank (BI) has announced that the digital shekel will stimulate competition in the payments market, as other central banks issue similar government digital currencies.

AT statement
BI says that the developed strategy for issuing the state digital currency is designed to help the economy, support innovation in the state’s payment system, reduce the amount of cash and support the financial technology sector.

Israel’s chief financial regulator officially announced that it had received 33 responses from representatives of various sectors of the economy, half of which were provided by companies operating abroad. About 17 responses came from representatives of the financial and technical sector.

BI is going to continue researching the state digital currency of the Central Bank.

“The Bank of Israel has not yet made a final decision on whether it will issue a digital shekel. But all responses point to public support for continued research into various implications for the payments market, financial and currency stability, legal and technology issues, and more.

Some respondents insist on complete anonymity, as is practiced with cash, BI representatives say. Some believe that the digital shekel should be subject to anti-money laundering regulations and help fight the black economy.

The digital shekel, survey results say, should have zero or low cost for business owners and their customers, and be easy to use for everyone, including seniors:

However, in March, the Central Bank of Israel expressed serious concerns that the adoption of the digital shekel by the population could lead to a decrease in the total volume of bank deposits of individuals.