In an age where cash is increasingly being replaced by digital payment, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) are emerging as a new frontier in the evolution of money. CBDCs are digital versions of a country’s national currency issued by its central bank. They utilise the convenience of digital technologies but also face challenges such as the impact on monetary policy and market competition.

The rise of new

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No one could have predicted the meteoric rise of cryptocurrencies. After all, who would have thought that a digital asset without any intrinsic value could achieve such traction? But as cryptocurrency becomes increasingly popular, the digital currency secured by cryptography has faced challenges. Some experts believe that regulation is necessary to safeguard investors and legitimise the currency.

It’s a fine balance in the world of shipping. Risks – physical and cyber – are part and parcel of the ‘cargo’.

Depending on the headline of the day, cryptocurrency can be a villainous play for rookie investors (in the case of the Squid Game crypto scam) or a means of becoming an overnight billionaire (as with the “whale” who allegedly held on to US$5.7 billion worth of Shiba Inu crypto coins).

In recent years, blockchain technology has been hailed as a breakthrough disruptor, poised to drive innovation in virtually every industry ranging from legacy organisations to game-changing start-ups in the new digital economy. This revolutionary technology stems from the ability of blockchain to act as a decentralised distributed ledger. It promises more secure real-time transactions and record-keeping, making it harder for important data to be manipulated or falsified.
 

Retail is undergoing a digital revamp like no other, as customers become the new king in the age of digital commerce. Retailers need to focus on building authenticity and trust - as they look at enhancing the customer experience.

At the recent SMU Retail Centre of Excellence (RCoE) Asia Retail Leaders Conference 2021, Shantanu Bhattacharya, SMU Professor of Operations Management, shed light on the impact of digitalisation on the retail supply chain.