DCash is the digital equivalent of the Eastern Caribbean currency. The ECCB launched the DCash Pilot in March 2021, which tested a retail Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) system for the creation, distribution, management and transactions in DCash. The Pilot was conducted in all eight Eastern Caribbean Currency Union countries and resulted in the use of DCash for person to person (P2P), person-to-business (P2B), and business-to-business (B2B) payment flows. The Pilot ended in January 2024.
ECCB intends to implement a commercial retail CBDC system within the ECCU- DCash 2.0. Building upon the lessons learnt from the Pilot, the ECCB envisions DCash 2.0 to be a secure, stable and scalable platform supporting an array of retail payment flows, including person-to-person (P2P), person-to-business (P2B), business-to-business (B2B), government to person(G2P), and person to government (P2G) payments, and providing for instant transaction settlement of DCash transactions.
DCash 2.0 should also enable innovations in financial services beyond payments, must be accessible to the broadest segments of the ECCU public, technology-agnostic and adaptable to future developments in central bank digital currencies, including interoperability. The motivation for DCash 2.0 continues to be the provision of a digital financial infrastructure which supports economic activities throughout the ECCU, contributes to a diverse payments' toolkit, streamlines financial transactions and helps to reduce the use of cash while laying the foundation for further and future digital payments innovation. In December 2023, the ECCB issued a Request for Information (RFI) to technology vendors in preparation for DCash 2.0.
The ECCB, established in 1983, is the monetary authority for eight countries in the ECCU, including Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Christopher (St. Kitts) and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The ECCB is responsible for the maintenance of monetary and financial stability in the ECCU, facilitating the development of the financial system, promoting credit conditions favourable to economic development, and fostering an effective banking system. As a complement to its core functions, the ECCB is also proactive in promoting financial education and financial innovations, including DCash, that cater to the evolving economic landscape of the region.
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