e-Dirham: what is a CBDC and why now?
A CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency) is a digital currency directly issued and guaranteed by a country's central bank, as opposed to traditional physical currencies (notes, coins) or private currencies (bank deposits, stablecoins like USDT). For Morocco, the e-Dirham project emerges in a context of accelerated payment system digitalization.
Pilot phase: 50,000 testers, 6 months, dedicated app
For this critical pilot phase, BAM selected 50,000 volunteer testers via online registration. The panel includes: 12,000 banking executives, 15,000 university students, 8,000 merchants/restaurateurs, 7,000 civil servants, 5,000 visiting MRE, 3,000 retirees.
International CBDC comparison: where do other countries stand?
Out of 134 countries tracked by Atlantic Council CBDC Tracker (May 2026), 3 countries have launched CBDC operationally (Bahamas, Jamaica, Nigeria), 9 countries in active pilot phase (China, India, Sweden, Australia, Russia, South Africa, Singapore, Brazil, UAE), and 35+ countries in advanced exploration.
Article based on official public data + wafir.ma expert sources. All cited statistics are verifiable with the mentioned organizations.
Tags