Taler Systems SA - CBDC

Digital Cash Can Do More

Digital Cash with Taler is much more than yet another digital payment system. Taler will transform economies:

Income transparency with defined contracts

Simplified tax filing and less expensive tax audits

Economic one-click micropayments

Enabling new business models, especially for digital publishing

Free Software reference implementation

Respects individual and national sovereignty

Parent-controlled privacy-respecting age verification

Providing inexpensive and convenient youth protection

Multi-currency capable

Useful for regional currencies for diverse economic zones

Citizens can pay online without having a bank account

Enables digital remittances from social services to unbanked populations

Proven Technology

Taler is built on top of established, time-tested technologies with a conservative design:

  • Common SQL database with Client-Server (HTTP-REST) APIs; no blockchain, no P2P network
  • Well-understood inexpensive cryptographic building blocks (RSA, DSA); no ZK-SNARKs
  • Concrete contracts with clear legal foundation; no VM, no Solidity smart-contracts

Comprehensive Execution

The Taler system is not just a wallet:

  • Adapters for integration with the established banking system (LibEuFin)
  • End-user backup and key management (Anastasis)
  • Merchant integration and back-office support
Try it yourself with the interactive demo!

Advantages of a Value-Based CBDC

As a value-based system Taler is the closest possible digital equivalent to cash. In addition to satisfying regulatory requirements, Taler allows central banks to be able to impose withdrawal limits to protect against bank runs or impose negative interest rates to disincentivize hoarding. The Taler CBDC architecture is two-tiered such that interactions would be facilitated by commercial banks. As a result, the central bank does not have to deal with citizen's accounts and associated Know-Your-Customer procedures and the associated support burden. Taler's privacy properties ensure that the central bank cannot come under political pressure to reveal information about citizens, while Taler's income transparency property ensures that the central bank receives key economic data to assist it with its economic analyses.

Hardware-Based CBDC

Offline-capable CBDCs based on hardware have serious drawbacks:

  • Imposes cost to purchase specific hardware-solution on citizens
  • Severe dependency on a small number of manufacturers with limited competition
  • Hardware security frequently fails, especially against users with an incentive to attack devices under their physical control
  • Competition with physical cash further exacerbates resilience against disasters involving power outages

  Free Software-Based CBDC

    Free software is the best fit for a digital currency:

  • Virtually zero cost to citizens to obtain, update or customize

  • All software companies globally can offer service and support on an equal footing
  • Transparency makes problems easier to detect, and software is inexpensive to update
  • No competition for physical cash for offline use

Read the whitepaper by the SWISS NATIONAL BANK (SNB) on 'How to issue a Central Bank Digital Currency' based on Taler technology:
SNB Whitepaper