The paper, titled Central Bank Digital Currency: Challenges and Lessons for Morocco, was co-authored by Mohammed Mikou, head of the Financial Research Department at Bank Al-Maghrib, and researchers Chaymae Chaoui and Kamal Lahlou.
The study comes as 93 central banks, representing 76% of the world’s population and 94% of global GDP, are considering issuing a CBDC. It examines the choices facing Morocco and the conditions needed before a digital dirham can become a reality.
Financial digitalization accelerated after the Covid-19 pandemic. Electronic payments, digital wallets and QR codes have changed how people transact, while distributed ledger technology (DLT), cryptocurrencies, stablecoins and decentralized finance tokens have introduced new possibilities.
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These developments also carry risks, including volatility, consumer protection concerns, the digital divide, financial instability, cybersecurity threats and environmental pressures.
The authors explain that the paper aims to present the general concept of CBDCs, their different designs and the main economic effects of issuing them.
Four African countries, four different approaches
Nigeria launched the eNaira in 2021. Its design combines account-based access with partial anonymity and distributed ledger technology. It includes transaction limits, offline functionality for areas with weak connectivity, no interest payments and support for international cross-border payments.
Yet adoption has remained low. According to the working paper, the eNaira accounts for less than 1% of the currency in circulation. The experience suggests that issuing a digital currency is not enough. Public trust and integration into the existing financial system are essential to wider use.
Kenya has taken a more cautious approach. It is among the countries that have abandoned or suspended CBDC projects, alongside the United States, Denmark, Japan, Ecuador, Finland and the Philippines.
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In June 2023, the Central Bank of Kenya said a digital currency was not an immediate priority, while indicating that it would continue monitoring developments to inform future decisions. The experience offers a warning to African central banks weighing the costs and benefits of launching their own digital currencies.
Mauritius, meanwhile, has adopted targeted regulations for digital assets, placing it among jurisdictions with frameworks comparable to those of the Bahamas and the United Arab Emirates.
Egypt is working with Morocco and the World Bank on a second cross-border payment experiment. The project examines whether CBDCs can reduce settlement costs and delays, improve interoperability and support regional financial integration. Such improvements could be particularly significant for diaspora remittances.
A digital dirham, but under specific conditions
Morocco has established working groups, conducted a proof of concept with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, and tested two technological solutions.
The prototype used a two-tier hybrid architecture. Bank Al-Maghrib would issue the digital currency, while financial intermediaries would distribute it, manage customer relationships and carry out compliance checks. The results confirmed the technical feasibility of this approach and highlighted the advantages of a modular architecture.
However, technical feasibility does not guarantee successful implementation. The paper cites research by Auer and colleagues (2023), which finds that the likelihood of meeting CBDC objectives increases when countries have credible institutions, strong digital infrastructure, the capacity to innovate and a well-developed financial system.
Morocco has pursued several digital development strategies, including e-Maroc, Maroc Numérique, Maroc Digital and Digital Morocco 2030. Significant obstacles nevertheless remain, including the cost of internet subscriptions, broadband coverage gaps, uneven digital development across sectors, a shortage of technology providers and the need for domestic data centers, cloud services and servers.
The payments market also presents a mixed picture. Morocco had more than 22 million bank cards in 2024, but checks remain widely used, while cards are still used primarily for cash withdrawals. Cash remains dominant, with the amount in circulation rising from 70 billion dirhams in 2001 to more than 500 billion dirhams in 2025.
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Banking access is another challenge. The bank account ownership rate among resident individuals stands at 62%, while people aged 15 to 24 account for only about 10% of account holders.
The informal economy represents approximately 30% of GDP and 75% of employment. Only 2% of informal production units have a dedicated bank account, highlighting the difficulties of extending formal financial services to businesses operating outside the formal economy.
Design choices for a digital dirham
The working paper outlines several possible features for a Moroccan CBDC. These include a retail digital currency, a combination of token-based and account-based access, and partial anonymity calibrated according to transaction thresholds and know-your-customer (KYC) requirements.
The proposed architecture would remain hybrid, involving Bank Al-Maghrib, banks and fintech companies. The underlying platform could use distributed ledger technology or a centralized database, provided it supports interoperability and can evolve with technological developments.
Other options include transaction limits linked to the user’s level of identification, offline payments through cards or unstructured supplementary service data (USSD), and a zero-interest rate to reduce competition with bank deposits.
Cross-border payments could also be supported, potentially through interoperability with the digital euro and mBridge, a platform designed to facilitate cross-border payments using central bank digital currencies.
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The aim would be to expand financial inclusion, reduce dependence on cash and modernize payments without undermining banking stability.
The authors argue that a CBDC used primarily for payments and gradually replacing cash would have a limited effect on the banking sector. A digital currency that competes directly with bank deposits, however, could increase banks’ funding costs, reduce profitability and alter the transmission of monetary policy.
The Moroccan banking system would have some capacity to absorb the effects of moderate adoption, the paper suggests.
Economic gains and financial stability risks
The research reviewed in the paper points to potential benefits as well as risks. Barrdear and Kumhof (2022) estimate that a CBDC could boost US economic output by about 3%. Ferrari and colleagues (2022), examining open economies, identify potential spillover effects, capital outflows and greater sensitivity to foreign economic policies.
Research by Oh and Zhang (2022) finds an L-shaped relationship between informality and CBDC adoption: adoption tends to be higher where the informal economy is smaller. Zhang and Chan (2025) link China’s e-CNY to a reduction in tax evasion.
CBDC remuneration could strengthen the interest-rate channel of monetary policy, but it could also increase competition with bank deposits. Murakami and colleagues (2022) conclude that setting the CBDC interest rate below the policy rate is optimal in economies with high financial inclusion. A higher rate may be justified in countries where inclusion remains low.
Financial stability would depend on four main factors: the CBDC’s remuneration, banks’ access to financial markets, transaction limits and the structure of the banking market.
The paper also highlights the risks of digital bank runs and cyberattacks. The European Central Bank, it notes, sees public infrastructure as a potential fallback mechanism.
A strategic choice for Morocco
The working paper describes a Moroccan CBDC as a potential tool for regional and international integration. Its purpose would extend beyond introducing a new payment technology to include monetary sovereignty, financial inclusion, the gradual formalization of economic activity and stronger African financial ties.
But its success would depend on public authorities’ support, the maturity of digital infrastructure, cybersecurity and users’ trust.
Nigeria’s experience shows that issuance alone does not guarantee adoption. Kenya illustrates the case for caution, while Mauritius offers an example of targeted digital asset regulation and Egypt’s cooperation with Morocco points to the potential of cross-border payment systems.
For Morocco, the central question is not simply whether a digital dirham can be built. It is whether the currency can gain practical use while preserving financial stability and delivering clear benefits to households and businesses.
