Brazil launches new digital currency Drex

Brazil's Central Bank (BC) has announced the creation of a Brazilian version of the "Central Bank Digital Currency" (CBDC). This currency was named Drex - short for digital, real, electronic, respectively, where the "x" stands for modernity and connection or transaction. It is expected to be in circulation by the end of 2024.

The central bank expects the new currency to help reduce banking costs and increase consumer engagement in the new financial market.

In an official statement, the Central Bank said that "the digital real is an expression of the Brazilian sovereign currency that is being developed to support a safe environment where entrepreneurs can innovate and consumers can access the technological advantages that these new tools offer, without risking falling into an unregulated financial environment."

Unlike cryptocurrencies, which work like stocks on a stock exchange where investors put money in in search of returns, Drex will not have fluctuations in price as it will only be a virtual representation of the physical Brazilian currency.

Drex will have the same value as real.

Drex is a wholesale currency, not a retail currency, and will not be accessed directly by account holders, but through virtual wallets linked to payment organisations such as banks and reporter banks. The customer will deposit a reporter amount in reals into these wallets and will be able to make transactions with the digital version of the currency.

In practice, Drex can be used to buy real estate, cars, and even government bonds, as reported by Toda Palavra, a partner of TV BRICS.

The regulator also emphasised that it is working on creating a platform for Drex transactions based on blockchain technology - the same system used in cryptocurrencies that guarantees a secure environment for transactions, but in this case the guarantees are provided by the state.

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