Universal Digital Payment Network (UDPN) has launched a digital currency sandbox for commercial banks and central banks. UDPN was launched at Davos last year and is committed to achieving interoperability of digital currencies (including stablecoins and CBDCs). After collaborating with over 25 global commercial banks, central banks, and technology companies, the network has launched a sandbox where members can learn about digital currency technology, test built-in use cases, and develop their own new custom use cases. Commercial and central banks have a secure environment to control and provide licensed access to other institutions in their ecosystem. The sandbox has a range of digital currency technologies, including retail CBDCs, wholesale CBDCs, tokenized deposits, stablecoins, dedicated currencies, as well as securities and bond tokenization systems. It also includes a complete retail CBDC system for banks to test quota management, issuance, circulation, third-party access APIs, as well as wallet and transaction management.

At a meeting of the Association of Russian Banks, the Governor and Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Russia provided an update on the latest developments of the digital ruble. So far, 25,000 transactions have been conducted, with 19,000 of them being person-to-person payments and the rest involving consumer-to-business payments, with approximately 3,500 payments involving smart contracts. Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina added that testing is progressing as planned. Currently, 19 banks, including Russia's largest bank Sber, have conducted trials, but expansion is still needed. In terms of functionality, the central bank will introduce dynamic QR code payments, support online payments, and transfers between businesses. It also plans to develop smart contract functionality. Elvira Nabiullina also said that the progress of regulated digital assets (DFA) in Russia is smooth, and legislation allowing DFA to be used for cross-border payments has been passed by the State Duma.

Belarus plans to develop a blockchain platform for its central bank digital currency (CBDC). The state-owned Bank Technology Center began building the CBDC platform in January and is now actively recruiting developers. The platform will be built on the open-source Hyperledger Fabric blockchain. The Bank Technology Center is recruiting backend developers who are familiar with Hyperledger Fabric and Linux and have experience creating smart contracts. <br>

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) and the Japanese government held their first official meeting to discuss central bank digital currency (CBDC). As reported by local TV channel NHK on January 26th, the government and the Bank of Japan agreed to resolve legal issues related to the issuance of digital yen in the spring of 2024. However, neither the Bank of Japan nor the government has officially confirmed the launch of digital yen, and any decision will be made no earlier than after a "national discussion" in 2026. In December 2023, the Bank of Japan saw a report from a Ministry of Finance expert group recommending the "immediate" issuance of digital yen. The experts decided that the Japanese CBDC should coexist with cash and the Bank of Japan must limit the storage of potential personal data to a minimum. The Bank of Japan completed the second phase of CBDC testing in May 2023. The test ran for a year, involving 100,000 users and 5 intermediaries, with a load of 500 transactions per second and 3,000 transactions. The experiment was declared successful, and the Bank of Japan continues its scheduled CBDC pilot project, which should examine the "end-to-end process" and further connections with external systems.

According to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a candidate for the US presidency, he recently stated that if elected, he pledged to terminate the US's efforts to promote central bank digital currency (CBDC) and said he would do everything possible to preserve paper currency. Kennedy also reminded people that Bitcoin is more protective than cash. (Cointelegraph) Earlier, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wrote on X platform, "If I become president, I will ensure that your right to use and hold Bitcoin is not violated. Bitcoin is not only a fortress against authoritarianism and manipulation of the money supply, but also points the way to a more transparent and democratic future for government agencies."

During a rally in New Hampshire, Donald Trump reiterated his opposition to central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), stating that he will never allow their creation. He referred to crypto-friendly candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who recently suspended his campaign after a disappointing showing in Iowa. Trump has previously expressed concerns that a CBDC would give the federal government absolute control over people's money. With the suspension of Ramaswamy and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who also criticized CBDCs, digital assets may now take a back seat in the 2024 U.S. presidential race. However, voters in Florida have shown interest in the topic, according to a report by CoinDesk.

Morgan Stanley's Head of Digital Assets, Andrew Peel, has warned that the increasing popularity and adoption of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, as well as the development of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), could threaten the dominance of the US dollar as a global currency. Peel highlighted the potential paradigm shift in the way people view and interact with digital assets as a threat to the dollar's status. He also noted that CBDCs could establish a unified standard for cross-border payments, potentially diminishing the reliance on traditional intermediaries like SWIFT and dominant currencies like the dollar. Despite this, Peel acknowledged the advantages of CBDCs, including their potential to support innovation by automating transactions using smart contracts.

The Bank of Spain (BDE) publicly called for partners to test central bank digital currency (CBDC) a year ago. On January 3, 2023, the Bank of Spain announced a resolution, declaring a partnership with Cecabank, Abanca, and Adhara Blockchain.

The Russian tax authorities will start using digital rubles for taxation from 2025, and banks will be given the power to prevent "suspicious" CBDC transactions. According to Klerk, the latest tax law amendment signed by Russian President Putin at the end of last year states that the Russian tax authorities will "switch to using digital rubles for taxation from 2025". The media added that the Ministry of Finance hopes to "start paying pensions and other social benefits with digital rubles". As part of the expanded pilot program, government agencies promise to actively adopt digital rubles in 2024.

According to the latest survey by the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF), 41% of central banks expect to have operational central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) by 2028, and nearly 70% of central banks hope to have CBDCs within 10 years. However, among the central banks surveyed, 17% ruled out the possibility of launching digital currencies.