The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is considering the launch of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) and studying how tokenised money could save billions of dollars in costs in domestic financial markets. RBA Assistant Governor Brad Jones said tokenisation could deliver hypothetical transaction savings of around A$13 billion ($8.20 billion) a year to issuers in Australia's capital markets.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a bill into law allowing the country's central bank to issue its own digital currency, the digital ruble. The digital ruble will be used for payments alongside other methods and will be managed by the central bank. The project was initially viewed as a tool against sanctions and a way to control government spending on social projects. Additionally, the digital ruble will allow for controlling and limiting the ways private citizens spend their money.

According to the governor of China's central bank, Yi Gang, the digital yuan has been used for transactions worth almost $250 billion since the start of its pilot program a year and a half ago. As of the end of June, the central bank digital currency had transacted 1.8 trillion yuan, with around 950 million transactions from 120 million wallets. However, the adoption of the digital yuan is still minimal relative to China's population, and only represents 0.16% of the country's monetary supply. The digital yuan has mostly been used for domestic retail payments, with a few trials in Hong Kong.

Zimbabwe's central bank has begun a "pilot" test of a gold-backed digital currency. The digital currency will serve as an alternative to foreign exchange, can be used for peer-to-peer transactions, and is designed to stabilize local currencies. Earlier, the central bank announced plans to launch a P2P platform that would allow holders to trade digital gold tokens. The central bank said the gold-backed tokens would help reduce the need for foreign currencies such as the U.S. dollar and serve as a store of value. As local residents generally ditch their depreciating local currency in favor of dollars, they can now use gold-backed digital tokens as a store of value.

July 4 (Cointime) - The Chinese Communist Party has reportedly chosen a Bitcoin skeptic to be the party secretary of the central bank, potentially making him the next governor. Pan Gongsheng, the current deputy governor of the People's Bank of China (PBOC), is in charge of the Leading Group of Internet Financial Risks Remediation, which is responsible for regulating financial technology companies and clamping down on cryptocurrency use in China.

June 20 (Cointime) - Zimbabwe's central bank is set to launch a peer-to-peer platform for facilitating digital gold token transactions, which is expected to reduce local demand for the US dollar. The platform is part of the bank's measures to stabilize the Zimbabwean dollar and diminish the need for foreign currencies.

June 15 (Cointime) - Brazilian President Lula has signed a decree establishing rules for the country's central bank and securities regulator in relation to cryptocurrencies. The legislation allows the Central Bank of Brazil to regulate and supervise virtual asset service providers, while the Comissão de Valores Mobiliários will oversee many token projects that qualify as securities.

Brazil's Central Bank, Banco Central do Brasil (BCB), has released a roadmap for the launch of its CBDC and will also explore the possibility of tokenized assets. The BCB will host monthly webinars until November to discuss CBDC rollout and the results of its digital real pilot, with participation from fintech experts and BCB partners.

Kenya's central bank has stated that the issuance of a digital currency is not a top priority but it will continue to monitor developments in the area. The bank previously invited public views on the potential introduction of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in February 2020, but has decided not to issue any. The bank cited challenges faced by other central banks that have rushed to issue digital currencies and the recent instability in the global crypto assets market as reasons for a careful review of innovation and technology risks. Kenya may instead rely on existing technologies, such as mobile money payments, to address any problems in payments.

The Central Bank of the UAE has issued new guidance on anti-money laundering (AML) and countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) measures for crypto businesses. The guidance highlights the risks associated with dealing with virtual assets and virtual asset service providers (VASPs), in line with the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The new rules will be effective in one month and will impact Licensed Financial Institutions in the UAE, including banks, finance companies, exchange houses, payment service providers, registered hawala providers, and insurance companies. The move is aimed at strengthening the supervisory and regulatory frameworks of the Central Bank to combat financial crime activities and reduce potential risks to protect the financial and monetary system.