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The Republic of Palau has reported high satisfaction in its pilot program for a Ripple-based Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). Despite some minor issues, the initial research shows promise for the island nation’s stablecoin program. The pilot program, which ran from June to September 2023, allowed 168 employee volunteers to make purchases from local retailers using the Ripple-powered CBDC. The program had restrictions in place, such as a limit of $20,000 worth of digital currency in circulation and only participating retailers being able to redeem the stablecoin for US dollars.
The Ministry of Finance collected data and surveyed the program participants, finding that 31.7% rated the experience as good and 36.6% rated it as excellent. While 58% of respondents found setting up and using the payment wallet easy, there were reported issues with slowness during payments and problems with QR code usage and manual address input. Despite these challenges, the Ministry of Finance described the first phase of the program as a success among both volunteers and retailers.
Looking ahead, future phases of the program will focus on creating a larger ecosystem using the stablecoin and establishing a legal framework. The long-term goal is to introduce the stablecoin nationally as a convenient and cost-effective payment method. Palau is also known for its digital residency program, which allows users to obtain identity cards for $248, granting access to certain services including crypto services.