Morocco’s Central Bank Explores Digital Currency Amid Crypto Ban

Morocco is showing interest in cryptocurrencies and could create its own virtual currency. A currency that has been banned from use in the kingdom since a decision taken at the end of 2017. At the time, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM) and the Moroccan Capital Market Authority (AMMC) pointed to the lack of regulation of transactions with virtual currency. They also warned about the volatility of the exchange rate of virtual currencies against a legal tender currency, as well as the risk of using these currencies for illicit or criminal purposes, including money laundering and terrorist financing.

Today, this perception seems to be changing. BAM has set up a committee whose mission is to identify and analyze the advantages, but also the risks, of a CBDC for the Moroccan economy, reports La MAP. It must also consider the necessary measures to be taken in the face of the evolution of crypto-assets at the national and international level.