Ripple Inc., an enterprise blockchain and crypto firm focused on cross-border payment technologies, has partnered with the Digital Euro Association, a a think tank specializing in central bank digital currencies.
The partnership will see Ripple working alongside Digital Euro Association to collaborate on accelerating development and research for the creation of a European central bank digital currency (CBDC). The partnership, however, may not be entirely in congruence with recent statements from the European Commission that it is aiming to build a CBDC framework with a target date set for 2023.
“We are thrilled that, due to the partnership with Ripple, we can extend the technological expertise of the DEA community. As more and more CBDC projects worldwide reach advanced stages, technological design of a CBDC will play a key role for policy-makers in the near future, while previous years focused primarily on research,” shares Jonas Gross, Chairman of the Digital Euro Association.
Ripple has been involved in several CBDC initiatives across the world, with the U.K., Bhutan, and the Republic of Palau also forming technical partnerships with the firm. Ripple will be taking on the role of a “supporting partner” the the Digital Euro Association, sharing technical expertise on blockchain-based implementations for central bank digital currencies. In October last year, Ripple joined the Digital Pound Foundation through an advisory role on its board, in a bid to help develop a U.K. CBDC.
According to a press release published by the Digital Euro Association, the partnership with Ripple will cover “joint educational efforts around digital currencies and knowledge exchange.” Ripple says that it has been investing significant efforts to the growing number of CBDCs globally, disclosing that it currently has 40 developers and researchers working on CBDCs across its portfolio of partnerships.
The partnership is not directly linked to the European government’s own efforts at creating a digital Euro, given that it is a research-based and theoretical initiative. However, with Ripple as as a partner and the Digital Euro Association working as a think tank, policy and regulation for a European CBDC will likely be influenced if indeed a digital Euro comes to fruition.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
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