Norway’s central bank, Norges Bank, has assessed whether introducing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) is necessary to ensure that payments in Norwegian kroner remain secure, efficient, and attractive.

Governor Ida Wolden Bache said:

“Norges Bank has concluded that introducing a central bank digital currency is currently not warranted. The need for such a currency may, however, change in the future. We will be ready to introduce a central bank digital currency if it becomes necessary to maintain an efficient and secure payment system.”

CBDCs can take two forms.

Retail CBDC would be universally accessible, similar to cash or bank deposits.

Wholesale CBDC would be limited to banks and other financial entities with central bank accounts and could be used for interbank settlement.

In a wholesale CBDC, banks’ deposits are represented as digital units – tokens – on a blockchain-based ledger.

Norges Bank notes that Norway’s payment system is already efficient and secure, with stable operations, fast payments, low costs, and robust contingency arrangements.

The need for a CBDC could change as financial technology evolves.

Tokenisation may bring efficiency gains and reduce settlement risk, but other risks remain, and future usage is uncertain.

Many central banks are researching CBDCs, and the Eurosystem is considering a digital euro.

Standards and IT systems for CBDCs are not yet fully developed, though international adoption could enable infrastructure collaboration.

Norges Bank will continue research on tokenisation and CBDCs, including experimental testing and collaboration with payment system participants.

The Bank will also provide input to legislation and explore potential use of Eurosystem CBDC solutions and standards.

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