Kazakhstan’s National Bank set to launch digital currency by 2025

The National Bank of Kazakhstan has released a report on the “Digital Tenge” project’s execution, citing that the digital tenge would be adopted in three stages by the end of 2025. 

The first step, which will be executed in 2023, will entail the creation of fundamental scenarios for employing the digital tenge as a payment method.

The second stage will entail testing cross-border settlements in digital currencies by central banks, interaction with players in the digital asset market, and other new use cases.

“The digital tenge is not meant to replace conventional payment systems but rather to work alongside them. The debut of the digital tenge would boost the availability of financial services, improve the efficiency of government expenditures, and offer chances for the creation of new financial products,” the National Bank of Kazakhstan said.

The creation of the digital ruble in Russia began in 2020. A law on its deployment as a third type of national currency equal to cash and non-cash was adopted in August of this year.

The main distinction between the digital ruble and other forms of money is that it will be held on the Central Bank platform, which citizens may access for free via any bank’s mobile application.