COMPENDIUM REPORT

The report provides a comprehensive analysis of CBDCs and stablecoins, arguing that while they offer potential for payment efficiency and financial inclusion, they currently face significant barriers similar to traditional finance, such as identity requirements and digital literacy. It details technical options for privacy (e.g., zero-knowledge proofs), interoperability standards, and cybersecurity risks. The document emphasizes the need for public-private cooperation and international coordination to prevent regulatory arbitrage and ensure consumer protection.

• Over 70% of central banks are currently exploring the design and issuance of CBDC to improve financial inclusion, digital trade, payment efficiency, and access to safe central bank money.
• Stablecoins may introduce significant risks to users and financial systems if they lack sufficient regulatory oversight, transparency, or adequate reserve assets, potentially leading to digital 'run risk'.
• The public sector can implement 'synthetic CBDC', a public-private partnership where private stablecoin issuers fully back customer holdings with reserves held directly at the central bank.
• Stablecoins currently do not provide compelling new benefits for financial inclusion beyond pre-existing options, as they are subject to the same barriers such as lack of identity documentation, limited internet connectivity, and low digital literacy.
• Privacy in CBDC can be achieved through a spectrum of cryptographic techniques, including zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) for verifiability without data disclosure and homomorphic encryption for computing on encrypted data.
• Interoperability for digital currencies requires common messaging formats, such as ISO 20022, and the development of cross-chain protocols to enable seamless transfers between different blockchain types.
• The use of distributed ledger technology (DLT) for CBDC involves a trade-off: it can increase hardware fault tolerance and transparency but may reduce transaction speed and increase cybersecurity 'attack surfaces'.
• Cybersecurity threats to CBDC include credential theft via social engineering or malware, and the long-term risk that quantum computers could break current encryption methodologies.

APA

World Economic Forum (2021). COMPENDIUM REPORT. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Digital_Currency_Governance_Consortium_White_Paper_Series_2021.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. COMPENDIUM REPORT. 2021. https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Digital_Currency_Governance_Consortium_White_Paper_Series_2021.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=COMPENDIUM REPORT |date=November 2021 |url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Digital_Currency_Governance_Consortium_White_Paper_Series_2021.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2021compendium, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{COMPENDIUM REPORT}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2021}, month = nov, url = {https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Digital_Currency_Governance_Consortium_White_Paper_Series_2021.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }