Money and legislation need to be adapted to digitalisation
Economic Commentaries, News The Riksbank has the task of ensuring that payments can be made safely and efficiently and that the krona retains its value. For this to be possible, cash needs to be both protected and supplemented with a digital alternative. The right conditions also need to be created for digital payments to become more efficient. The Riksbank has already come a long way in this work, but its continued success will require new legislation. These comments are made by Governor Stefan Ingves in an Economic Commentary in which he presents his vision for the future of money and payments.
Money and how we make payments are changing. Not so very long ago, cash was totally dominant, Now we have money in accounts and we make payments in the form of transfers between accounts. This development has many benefits. But if we do not adapt our money and legislation, it will also entail risks and potential losses. Moreover, current legislation and perhaps also parts of our way of thinking with regard to money and payments are still adapted to a time when everything was on paper.
In the Economic Commentary “Future money and payments”, Stefan Ingves presents his views on what needs to be done to ensure the Riksbank can continue to carry out its tasks in the future:
- There shall be enough cash in case the electronic systems break down.
- There shall be a national, state-issued ID card with e-identification.
- There shall be digital state money as legal tender, an e-krona, issued by the Riksbank.
- It shall be possible to make instant payments in Swedish krona, using state money, 24/7.
- It shall be possible to make instant payments between currencies across borders 24/7.
By Stefan Ingves, Governor of the Riksbank.