The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has unexpectedly announced it is backing out of the mBridge payments scheme, one of the highest-profile cross-border central bank digital currency (CBDC) initiatives, days after fresh concerns were raised the payments network could be used to evade sanctions.
Speaking at the Santander International Banking Conference 2024 in Madrid, Agustín Carstens, general manager of the BIS, confirmed that the organisation would be leaving the project after four years of involvement, according to the Banker.
“I would say that the project has been so successful that we can declare that we have graduated out,” Carstens said. He added the bank was leaving “not because it was a failure and not because of political considerations” but rather because “it is at a level where the partners can carry it on by themselves”.
However, he added a caveat: “At the same time, I have to say that mBridge is not mature enough to start operating; it is many years away from that.”
While BIS had previously indicated the project had reached MVP stage, the timing of the announcement comes days after questions arose regarding the development of a Brics Bridge payments scheme by Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa and other developing countries part of the Brics bloc, and its potential overlap with mBridge.