Colombia’s Central Bank Partners with Ripple to Explore Blockchain Use Cases

Colombia's central bank, Banco de la República, has partnered with blockchain firm Ripple to explore the use of blockchain technology.

According to Ripple, Banco de la República, in conjunction with the Ministry for the Information and Communications Technologies (MinTIC), will pilot Ripple's CBDC platform to improve its high-value payments system. The initiative is part of a blockchain experimentation phase conducted by MinTIC.

Ripple said that its CBDC platform “will be experimented and tested in a controlled environment without compromising public resources.”

“Potential efficiencies can be evaluated through the results obtained in the development of a solution with blockchain technology, which manages to improve and complement the processes in the entities in a safe and efficient way,” Mauricio Lizcano, Minister of Information Technologies and Communications of Colombia, said in a statement.

“By harnessing the power of the CBDC Platform, based upon the XRPL, this project will pave the way for transformative advancements in the utilization of blockchain technology within the public sector,” said James Wallis, vice president of Central Bank Engagements and CBDCs at Ripple.

In August 2022, Colombia’s government said it was considering the introduction of a central bank digital currency to facilitate transactions and reduce tax evasion, as well as planning to ban cash transactions for amounts surpassing 10 million Colombian pesos ($2390).