The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) will launch DCash, a digital version of the EC dollar, in four Eastern Caribbean countries today. The launch’s pilot countries are Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis and St Lucia.

DCash is a securely minted digital version of the Eastern Caribbean dollar issued by the ECCB. It offers a safer, faster, cheaper way to pay for goods and services and send EC funds to other DCash users, all using a smart device. From today, consumers and merchants in the four countries can sign up to use DCash through participating financial institutions or by downloading the DCash app from Google Play or Apple Store.

The ECCB has been working in partnership with Bitt for over two years to develop this digital version of the EC currency to increase financial inclusion, competitiveness and resilience for the people of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union.

As part of the live online event, governor of the ECCB, Timothy N J Antoine, along with the CEO of Bitt, Brian Popelka, will deliver remarks. Live DCash transactions will also be demonstrated.

The Bahamas is already using a digital Sand Dollar, issued by its central bank, which carries the same value and consumer protections as a traditional Bahamian dollar. Originally piloted in 2019, the Sand Dollar became the first fully deployed digital version of the country’s fiat currency in October 2020. Most of the world’s money is called fiat money, meaning it is accepted as money because it is backed by a central bank, such as the Bank of Jamaica.