MONETARY and financial institutions have been pinning their hopes on a digital overhaul for several years. How distant the outcome depends very much on who you ask, but the form of our new digital lives is slowly beginning to take shape.

Digital currencies remain persistent but unproven

Central banks are, almost without exception, conducting research into developing their own digital currencies. The proofs of concept have largely shown that at least some form of central bank digital currency (CBDC) is technically deliverable.