29-Jan-18, The Japan Times
Cash is still king in Japan, and that means the central bank doesn’t see a need to mint a digital currency for now, according to the head of the FinTech Center at the Bank of Japan.
%20Bloomberg.jpg "Japanese people love cash so much they dont need a digital currency (c) Bloomberg")
Image: Bloomberg
"We aren’t at the stage of considering issuing a digital currency because there is no demand," said Yuko Kawai, the head of the BOJ division.
Since taking over the job, Kawai tried to stop using cash. But while life is "much easier", there are many things that still require physical money. If you want to split the cost of dinner with friends, or pay for a taxi in rural Japan, she said, you need cash.