ISRAEL - Model Hub for Digital Currency
As part of the project dubbed Icebreaker, the Bank of Israel, together with the central banks of Norway and Sweden and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Hub, examined the potential benefits and challenges of using so-called retail central bank digital currencies (CBDC) in international payments to create a hub to interlink domestic systems across borders.
The Bank of Israel’s CBDC project manager Yoav Soffer noted, “Early on in our work on the digital shekel we wrote: ‘As part of the G20 roadmap for improvement of cross-border payments… the ability of CBDCs to streamline and lower the costs of these payments will be examined…. If such a global infrastructure is actually developed, a Bank of Israel digital currency will improve cross-border payments for Israelis.’”
“If Israel is to issue a digital shekel, it would be very important that we do it according to the evolving global standards, so that Israelis could use it also for efficient and accessible cross-border payments,” stated Bank of Israel deputy governor Andrew Abir.
For the digital shekel, the Bank of Israel envisages a two-tier approach in which a partnership is set up for the creation of the CBDC between the central bank and the private sector (banks, credit card companies, and technology and/or finance companies from Israel and abroad). With this partnership, the central bank will provide its digital currency not directly to the public but rather via the private-sector institutions.
-www.timesofisrael.com, 6 March 2023
Arno's Commentary
Here we see Israel taking on a leading position when it comes to global digital currency.
We are reminded of the many reports and books written about the “cashless society.” Yet we emphasize again that there is no such thing as cash in reality. Any paper currency is based on the faith of the public; the moment the public loses faith in the currency, hyperinflation takes place.
There is little to no doubt that digital currency is the future. Google explains: “A digital currency is a medium of exchange that is generated, stored and transferred electronically. Digital currencies are not typically associated with any country’s government or represented in physical forms like the coins and notes of traditional currencies.”
Investopedia.com adds: “Digital money can also represent fiat currencies, such as dollars or euros. Digital money is exchanged using technologies such as smartphones, credit cards, and online cryptocurrency exchanges. In some cases, it can be converted into physical cash through the use of an ATM.”
What does it all mean? In simple words, welcome to the global financial world.
This development is extremely profitable, practical, and helpful for those making or receiving payments internationally. However, we do know where it will ultimately lead; namely, the fulfillment of Revelation 13:17: “And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.”
Arno Froese is the executive director of Midnight Call Ministries and editor-in-chief of the acclaimed prophetic magazines Midnight Call and News From Israel. He has authored a number of well-received books, and has sponsored many prophecy conferences in the U.S., Canada, and Israel. His extensive travels have contributed to his keen insight into Bible prophecy, as he sees it from an international perspective.
