Sweden’s central bank The Riksbank has begun testing a digital currency designed to enable consumers to store an electronic version of the Swedish krona in a digital wallet and make payments, deposits and withdrawals using a mobile app.

The pilot will involve simulated users, who would be able to use their digital currency wallet to make e-krona payments via smartphones, wearables and cards.

“The objective is to create, in an isolated test environment, a digital krona that is simple and user friendly,” the Riksbank says — and also “fulfil critical requirements for security and performance”.

“The technical solution will be based on distributed ledger technology (DLT), often referred to as blockchain technology,” the central bank explains.

“The aim of the project is to show how an e-krona could be used by the general public.”

The pilot will run until the end of February 2021, with the option to extend and further develop the technical solution.

“There is currently no decision on issuing an e-krona, how an e-krona might be designed or what technology might be used,” the Riksbank says.

“The main purpose of the pilot is for the Riksbank to increase its knowledge of a central bank digital krona.”

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