Central Bank of Hungary collaborates with Perfinal to Launch the first Retail CBDC Pilot Project in the EU, Marking a New Milestone and Benchmark in Global Digital Currency Innovation
We are delighted to report about our pivotal role in the launch of the Central Bank of Hungary’s (Magyar Nemzeti Bank, MNB) pilot retail Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) project. This project is the first live retail CBDC pilot project in the European Union, placing Hungary and Perfinal at the cutting-edge of digital currency innovation.
This project embodies the core principles of CBDC: a digital form of money that is free to hold and transact. These characteristics are key to enable financial inclusion and accessibility in the digital age. We’re proud that our forward-looking e-money account management technology has facilitated the issuance and management of the Hungarian CBDC, ensuring the smooth operation of this revolutionary system.
In collaboration with financial institutions handling FIAT transaction processing, and a FinTech company focusing on whitelabel family banking solutions, this multifaceted project has been expertly steered with agility and commitment by the Central Bank of Hungary. The result is a successful launch, putting Hungary at the forefront of global innovation in this space.
Our CEO, Mate Brezovszki, reflected on the project: “Our collaboration with the Central Bank of Hungary has been an exceptional journey. Their unwavering commitment to innovation and their progressive mindset have been fundamental to the success of this project. We are thrilled to be part of this pioneering initiative. It sets a significant benchmark in the realm of financial technology. We are already planning further enhancements and look forward to refining the CBDC solution in continued collaboration with the Central Bank.”
The CBDC pilot project is integrated into the Student Safe mobile app, promoting financial literacy among the younger generation. This innovative app introduces digital money to children, allowing them to initiate transfers, set savings goals and more, all under parental supervision in a digital form.
Anikó Szombati, Chief Digital Officer (CDO) at the Central Bank of Hungary expressed: „The Central Bank of Hungary launched the Student Safe mobile app to support digital financial inclusion of students and at the same time gain hands-on experience on a potential operational model of a future CBDC system. It has been a very exciting journey with Perfinal and its partners. We deem it as a learning process, where central banks not only have to cooperate with FinTechs, but also, feel and act like FinTechs, exploring and serving client needs with the help of agility and technology. Perfinal’s role in this achievement was vital, and we are looking forward to future collaborations.”
We’re immensely proud of our team and grateful to our partners for making this project possible. Stay tuned for more updates!
