The Bank of Jamaica Suggests Court Order Approval Required for Tracking CBDC Transactions

The Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) suggests that the authority must obtain a court order to track Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) transactions apart from wallet holders and issuers, as CBDC such emerging digital currencies that do not have a separate code that can be traced.

Jamaica Observer reported Wednesday, citing the BOJ said the central bank digital currency (CBDC) has a digital footprint and therefore has tracking capabilities. It is necessary to protect data privacy for the customers.

The Central Bank of Jamaica outlines that:

"However, this information is not shared with the Bank of Jamaica and any other authority due to customers' confidentiality and data protection. This information can only be shared under a court order. Bank of Jamaica will only capture general data for economic analysis."

CBDC is a digital form of legal tender issued by the central bank of the country, which stands for Central Bank Digital Currency and represents the digital form of a nation’s fiat money (currency backed by trust or faith in the regulating government). Unlike traditional cryptocurrencies, cryptocurrencies are usually issued by private companies without the endorsement of the state. Therefore, Jamaica's CBDC can have the same payment and savings functions as cash.

BOJ stated that due to the characters of its CBDC, it would circulate in a larger area without incurring the cost of producing banknotes and coins.

Jamaica’s Minister of Finance Nigel Clarke has announced that the country intends to launch its central bank digital currency (CBDC) in 2022.

As reported by Blockchain.News on August 11, the project, under development by the BOJ's CBDC Team, has entered a pilot phase which will see a total of $230 million in CBDC minted and deposited with deposit-taking institutions and authorised payment service providers before December 2021.