This remarkable 2,430% growth will be driven by central banks seeking to safeguard monetary sovereignty in the face of card-network dominance and growing stablecoin popularity. Collaborative projects such as mBridge and Project Icebreaker, which seek to connect national CBDCs, will leave nations less reliant on established payment rails.

CBDCs are central bank issued digital versions of existing fiat currencies.

An extract from the new report, Global CBDCs and Stablecoins Market 2024-2031, is now available as a free download.

Demand for Simplified Cross-Border Payments Builds CBDC Momentum

The research forecast that, through the use of CBDCs and stablecoins, cross-border payments will save $45 billion by 2031. Remittance senders and global businesses are currently burdened by high fees and limited visibility. CBDCs and stablecoins streamline transfers by bypassing costly intermediaries, enabling direct transactions on decentralised or central bank-controlled networks.

Research author Lorien Carter commented: “Emerging payment technologies, like CBDCs and stablecoins, will streamline international payments. These innovative technologies will help grow the digital economy and increase global financial inclusion by reducing the reliance on the US dollar for international settlements”.

Prioritise Interoperability While Building CBDCs

To fully unlock cross-border growth, the study emphasises that interoperability between different CBDCs is essential. CBDC vendors must participate in projects pioneered by global organisations such as BIS, allowing them to test their infrastructure and contribute to the design of multilateral interoperability standards. Without this collaboration, the CBDC ecosystem risks fragmentation, resulting in ‘digital islands’ which fail to realise the efficiency of cross-border payments.

The Research Suite

The new market research suite offers the most comprehensive assessment of the CBDCs and stablecoins market to date, providing analysis and forecasts of over 45,600 datapoints across 60 countries over eight years. It includes a ‘Competitor Leaderboard’ and examination of current and future market opportunities.