CBDC Launch May Lose Money for Banks

CBDC Launch ‘May Cost Russian Banks $684 Million a Year’

erm... I thought they were supposed to be super fast, efficient and cheap!?

The Central Bank vehemently opposes the adoption of what it calls “private cryptocurrencies” such as Bitcoin (BTC). But the bank wants to expiate the process of launching a digital ruble – which it wants to use to help de-dollarize the national economy.

OK... so where's the catch?

Forklog quoted the Moscow-based business strategy firm Yakov and Partners as estimating that banks stood to lose out if they were no longer needed to process retail and business payments – and if customers could store their funds in Central Bank-operated wallets instead of conventional bank accounts.

And Yakov and Partners stated that the only party that was set to benefit from a digital ruble issuance would be retailers. Using a digital ruble, Russian merchants would no longer have to pay bank fees or wait days for banks to complete transactions.

So, where's the problem, you might ask?

The steep drop, or disappearance, of middlemen (in this case retail banks) shaving fees off every transaction has been a central bank, and IMF, concern since CBDCs were considered.

The expectation is that banks will focus more on their financial services, such as loans, deposit accounts, selling investments etc. These value-added services are what will add value to a bank's very existence. Walk in Defi. Banks will be your wallets.