Bank-Al-Maghrib (BAM), the Central Bank of Morocco, considers the launch of a central bank digital currency and the advantages and disadvantages that such a move would entail. This change gains even greater significance since Bitcoin was banned for use in the country four years ago.
Recent reports say that BAM has established an exploratory committee to investigate, “identify and analyze” the pros and cons of a BAM-issued digital currency for the Moroccan economy. However, according to Morocco World News, the central bank is still cautious when it comes to cryptocurrencies, given their “speculative nature.”
BTC’s growing popularity and the increasing number of central banks interested in introducing CBDCs are likely to have contributed to this change in attitude. The new committee will thus be tasked with the investigation of crypto evolution, including Bitcoin’s noteworthy advances and augmenting acceptance.
Although Bitcoin was banned in Morocco in 2017, the cryptocurrency hasn’t stopped from thriving here. On the contrary, BTC still enjoys popularity as the country is among the first four countries in Africa with the highest BTC trading volume. The other three countries that trade more bitcoins are Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa.
Even if the launch of CBDC is being considered, Morocco maintains a cautious approach to cryptocurrencies as it did in the previous years when it warned crypto users that the use of digital currencies is not free of risks.