Why are central banks looking at blockchains?
Central banks are tiptoeing into the world of blockchain not because it is fashionable but because every part of the money-making machine, from settlement rails to asset custody, is slowly being rewritten as code.
The financial industry is already tokenizing money-market funds, Treasurys and even bank deposits. According to the Atlantic Council, 134 jurisdictions are studying or piloting a central bank digital currency (CBDC), up from just 35 in 2020.
Meanwhile, commercial banks have begun to warn that if they cannot move tokenized deposits across public blockchains such as Solana or private ledgers like R3 Corda, they risk being left behind.
From a central bank’s vantage point, two questions matter:
First, can traditional operations, such as open-market purchases, standing facilities and reserve remuneration still work if reserves and government bonds become smart tokens? Second, can monetary transmission improve when policy