Aleksandre Dzneladze, President of the Banking Association of Georgia, says the association is taking a cautious approach to the digital lari, citing strict regulatory requirements and potential risks to liquidity management.
Parliament has fast-tracked and adopted a legislative package defining the legal status of the digital lari. However, the National Bank of Georgia has said that a full-scale launch of the central bank digital currency (CBDC) is not planned in the coming years.
“We are still assessing the issue and, to be honest, approaching it with greater caution,” Dzneladze told journalists in response to a question from BMG. He noted that the European Union is also actively debating CBDCs, including the digital euro, and that the potential impact on liquidity management requires careful consideration.
Dzneladze said clear limits would need to be established on how much digital lari individuals and companies could hold. He stressed that the concerns extend beyond cybersecurity, as introducing a digital form of the national currency is directly linked to control over the overall money supply.
