Eco and digital

In this edition of The World in Less than 5 Minutes, which coincides with the last Friday of the month, we will discuss Central Bank-regulated digital currencies and responses to climate impact as well as share our readings.

Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) are digital currencies issued by the central banks of each nation. Therefore, they are regulated and are legal tender that can be used for various transactions.

Today, only two countries use CBDC in its entirety, namely the Bahamas (Sand Dollar), the first country in the world to implement it, and Nigeria (eNaira). Likewise, in China, which started its pilot plan in 2020, in March 2022 the digital yuan was already circulating in 12 cities, including Shanghai and Beijing, and Sweden is in an advanced process of implementation.

In line with the above, according to the consulting firm PwC, 80% of central banks are considering adopting this means of payment. According to CBDC Tracker, in the Americas Uruguay and Jamaica, are in the pilot phase, while Brazil is in the proof of concept phase and the rest of the countries (United States, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Peru, Chile, Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti) are in the concept analysis and research phase.

On the other hand, in the old continent, the analysis is predominant, although the progress in France stands out, where they are already in the pilot test phase, and Sweden, as already mentioned, is in the pilot test phase. Meanwhile, in Asia, Japan, Malaysia and Thailand are proof of the concept. The digital currency status of each country can be viewed at: https://cbdctracker.org.

According to the PwC study, in the next three to four years we will see several CBDCs circulating in different parts of the world. Faced with a supply of more than 10,000 available cryptocurrencies and nearly 300 million users, CBDCs aspire to earn a place without the words “central bank” getting in the way.

The footprint on the ozone layer is on the agenda of different governments, both as a result of the Paris Treaty and the policies applied in each country, as attested by the latest report by the IMF. Thus, taking into account that steel is one of the most widely used materials in the world and one of the most polluting (7% of CO2 emissions together with coal, oil and natural gas), it can be recycled as many times as necessary through decarbonization.

Steel recycling already covers 26% of global needs and large industries such as ArcelorMittal, Tata Steel and Scania, among others, are committed to the cause and climate urgency. Although recycling is a valid option, it is not enough to mitigate the environmental impact. In Europe, therefore, the issue is being addressed in other ways, through the replacement of fossil fuels with green hydrogen. In the United States, the electrolysis of iron ore is being developed. However, in both cases, the energy comes from renewable sources, which ensures sustainability and the absence of emissions during the process.

We have been talking about the digital transition of the economy for many years now. But this process is proving complicated and, in reality, few companies complete it successfully.

This book provides the necessary keys to make this transformation to the digital business ecosystem smooth and successful. Nacho Somalo, one of the leading Spanish experts in innovation, digital transformation and development of digital projects, brings us closer to the main digital business models. It analyzes cases of companies that were very successful and others that failed miserably; it compares digital native companies with large traditional corporations to understand how their culture and behaviour differ through concrete examples and the main areas involved in digital transformation; and it takes us into the value creation processes, revenue generation models and competitive approaches that have made small and medium-sized companies successful. startups without resources become large companies.

Written from the perspective of a seasoned professional who is familiar with both the workings of large companies and entrepreneurship, Digital Business Models is an indispensable tool for anyone who wants to understand the new management rules, how to adapt to them and how to design a competitive strategy that leads to a successful digital transformation.

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