CBDCs: which countries actually have a central bank digital currency (2026)

"Cash is dead, the central bank digital currency is coming." The line circulates as if obvious. The actual 2026 numbers are far more modest: only a handful of countries have truly launched a CBDC, the digital euro does not yet exist, and "exploring" is not "deploying." Here is the exact state of play.

Only 3 countries have actually launched a retail CBDC

Bahamas — the "Sand Dollar," launched in 2020: the world's first fully operational retail CBDC.
Nigeria — the "eNaira," launched in 2021.
Jamaica — "JAM-DEX," launched in 2022 — yet still only about 0.1% of the country's money supply in early 2026.

Three real launches, all in small economies, and with weak adoption even where the CBDC exists. This is a long way from the global shift the word "CBDC" conjures in the imagination.

The giant still in testing: China (e-CNY)

The digital yuan (e-CNY) remains the world's largest CBDC pilot: by the end of 2025 it had processed more than 3.4 billion transactions worth about 16.7 trillion yuan. But it is still a PILOT, not a completed national rollout — and in January 2026, China's central bank reclassified the e-CNY as "deposit liabilities," a shift away from its original function as "digital cash."

The digital euro: not before 2027-2029

In the euro area, nothing is launched. The digital euro's pilot phase is set to run for 12 months starting in the second half of 2027; a first issuance is only envisaged in 2029, and only if legislation is adopted. The ECB had received over 50 applications from payment providers for its pilot by March 2026. In other words: a project in preparation, with a distant timeline and political decisions still to come.

146 countries are "exploring" — what that means (and doesn't)

146 countries and currency unions, representing over 98% of global GDP, are exploring a CBDC; 77 are in the advanced phase (development, pilot or launch) and 41 pilots are under way. The subject is thus massive and global — but "exploring" or "piloting" is not "launching." The research is real; widespread deployment is not.

What the state of play proves

Only 3 countries have actually launched a retail CBDC, all small, with weak adoption.
The digital euro is not launched: a pilot at the earliest in late 2027, possible issuance in 2029, subject to legislation.
The research is global and serious (146 countries), making the topic very real.

What it does NOT prove

That "cash is already abolished": false — three micro-economies have launched one, and everywhere else cash remains the norm.
That a CBDC means the end of cash: in the 3 launched countries, the CBDC coexists with cash without replacing it.
That a surveillance currency is settled in Europe: the digital euro is not deployed, and its privacy design is precisely what is under debate.
"146 countries are exploring" (true) does not become "146 countries are launching" (false).

So the honest question is not "when will cash disappear" — no credible timeline foresees it. It is "what level of privacy the digital euro will have, if it ever comes." That is where the real power stakes lie — in the design, not in an abolition of cash that is neither decided nor scheduled.

Dossier : Monnaie & identité numérique : l'architecture du contrôle

TOME 2: L'Architecture du Contrôle

Sources

Accueil · Collection · Journal · Dossiers · Sources