In collaboration with the SIX Digital Exchange (SDX), six commercial banks, and the Swiss National Bank (SNB), a wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot project is underway.The exchange announced on Thursday that the pilot program, known as Helvetia Phase III, will produce a tokenized version of the Swiss franc as a settlement tool for digital securities trades on the SDX between financial institutions.
Banque Cantonale Vaudoise, Basler Kantonalbank, Commerzbank, Hypothekarbank Lenzburg, UBS, and Zürcher Kantonalbank are the six commercial banks.December 2023 to June 2024 is when the pilot will operate.
The only purpose of a wholesale CBDC is to facilitate money transfers between financial institutions.It is not the same as a retail CBDC, which is sold to customers as a virtual currency.The governor of France’s central bank stated last month that plans for a wholesale CBDC are also being developed by central banks in the euro area.
Threats to consumer privacy have been a source of concern and criticism for retail CBDCs, a problem that wholesale CBDCs face less of.