The Bank of Canada is working closely with its G7 and other partners on digital currencies, Governor Tiff Macklem said in an interview on Wednesday, adding a globally coordinated approach was needed to prevent surprises and keep such tools from being used by criminals.
Macklem told Reuters that the central bank was working on moving from demonstrating feasibility to more fully executable plans for a digital loonie, but saw no compelling need for one “right now.”
“If another country has one and we don’t, that could certainly create some problems,” said Macklem. “So we want to make sure we’re ready.
“Currencies move across borders, and so we certainly wouldn’t want to be surprised by some other country. It will be important for us to share information on what each of us is doing.”