Israel could soon be offering its own digital currency

The crypto industry is definitely here to stay. More and more people are realizing that a cashless society is the way of the future. Even though some governments are set against the disruptive nature of crypto, others are hoping to capitalize on it in their own way.

Israel has become the latest country to consider launching a state-owned digital currency. Sources close to the Financial Ministry has revealed that the country’s black market accounts for at least 22% of Israel’s GDP. Their hope is that a state-registered crypto would greatly decrease this number.

In addition, the country has plans to limit its cash circulation. Dealing in physical capsh could pave the way for money laundering schemes and tax evasion. A new possible legislation could detail a law that prohibits paying workers’ wages in cash. Israel’s Knesset, which is the country’s legislative committee, had tried to pass similar legislation two years ago, but was unsuccessful.

However, pressure is mounting for the country to launch its digital shekel soon, which would be on a one-to-one ratio with the physical shekel. Crypto adoption and interest is at an all-time high, something that the country’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is well aware of. He previously said:

“Is the fate of banks that they will eventually disappear? Yes. The answer is yes. Does it need to happen tomorrow, and do we need to do it through Bitcoin ? That’s a question mark.”

These are early days though, with the process of developing the digital shekel just getting started. In the meantime, the government has proposed the ‘Economic Arrangements Bill,’ which, if passed, would provide the Bank of Israel with a separate panel to consider creating the digital shekel.

Colu, which is a blockchain-based wallet app created in the country, has been in talks with the Israeli government with regard to creating and adopting its own digital currency. Mark Smargon, who is the Vice President of the platform, had this to say:

“The Israeli regulators have been looking into digital currencies for a while, we were even part of this conversation. If this initiative becomes a reality, Colu will be happy to collaborate as we believe digital currencies are the future of money.”

Israel is not alone in the quest to develop their own digital currency. Russia had previously announced that they would be launching their CryptoRuble, while Dubai has plans to launch emCash.