The technological revolution has also reached the financial system – and even the design of money itself. Many payment innovations build on improvements to underlying infrastructures have been many years in the making. For instance, harnessing technological progress, central banks around the world have instituted real-time gross settlement (RTGS) systems over the past decades. Meanwhile, operating hours of these systems have continued to lengthen around the globe, and in several countries are already operating almost 24/7. Individual consumers have grown increasingly comfortable with digital currencies through the rise of well-known cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin and Ether, along with the e-commerce shift and continuous growth in digital banking. However, many major traditional financial institutions have been hesitant to incorporate or adopt digital currencies.


Digital currencies can be divided into three categories, including Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) which are centralized and regulated by a nation’s central bank but have not yet developed in all geographies. The other two categories, Stablecoins which link to FIAT underlying currencies such as USD and EUR, along with native digital currencies – commonly known as cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin and Ether, are both decentralized and more prevalent across markets. The underlying technologies of digital currencies, including blockchain, have matured to the point of mass distribution and uncertainty in markets and institutions further pushes the adoption of digital currencies as a payment method as well as investment hedge. With increased adoption and regulation, it is expected that digital currency usage will expand heavily beyond the initial use. Cryptocurrencies have already exemplified how blockchain can be used securely for payments and, as digital currencies grow, it is expected that blockchain will expand and become a standard across digital payment types. Besides the advancem.