A smart card wallet producer firm named Tangem, which is based out of Switzerland has confirmed that it will issue physical bank notes for the Sovereign (SOV) which is the state digital currency of the Marshal Islands. The company made this announcement on January 28.
According to the announcement, physical depiction of the virtual currency will see to it that people can have a genuine and equivalent access to their digital currencies even if they fail to have an internet connection. The company reported that a physical SOV would be regulated as per the procedure for issuing the currency by the Marshallese officials.
Minister-in-Assistance to the President of Marshall Islands, Minister David Paul, assured that Tangem would assist us in a way that it will see to it that people living in places, which are not easily approachable like distant islands, can also reap benefits. This is because it will help them to trade in a more convenient and hassle-free manner using SOV.
According to the reports of Tangem, every note will have a microprocessor having the facilities of a blockchain. It will ensure that it handles a combination of both the known benefits of paper banknotes added with the security of the blockchain technique. In May 2018, the company supplied physical representations of digital currency, manufacturing 10,000 physical Bitcoin banknotes of different units in an experimental program.
The Republic of Marshall Islands, in February 2018, first confirmed that it would commence its own cryptocurrency added with an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) and transactions that would be free. A couple of government officials stated that once the notes are issued, it will flow in addition to the country’s other currency which is the United States dollar.
The plan whether to issue a cryptocurrency of its own or not lead to a debate and controversy both within the nation as well as with international organs like the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In August last year, the IMF requested the Marshallese government to think once again about the commencement of the sovereign as it was convinced that it would likely be a matter of a threat to the nation’s economic integrity and would hamper its relationships with foreign banks.
The President of Marshall Island, Hilda Heine, was in favor of the sovereign. This led to a vote of no confidence in the nation’s parliament known as the Nitijela. To begin with, the parliament supported the production of its own digital currency. Those against the President were certain that the initiated scheme for its self-digital currency could damage the nation’s stature.
Heine marginally managed to sail through the vote of no confidence in November 2018 as the Nitijela was divided between 16-16. The President admitted before the parliament that the scheme to overthrow her was a political plan and addressed the Sovereign as a significant moment for the countrymen.
