Belarus supported the proposal to establish the Development Bank of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Chairman of the Board of the National Bank of Belarus Roman Golovchenko told First News TV Channel, BelTA has learned.
Roman Golovchenko took part in the meeting of finance ministers and chairpersons of central (national) banks of the SCO member states in China in June. “It is the first time we have taken part in such a meeting as a participating country, studying the processes. There are two important priority issues for us: financing joint projects within the SCO and increasing the share of settlements in national currencies. Therefore, the key is the establishment of the SCO financial platform so that cross-cutting projects can be financed on terms more profitable than commercial ones. The member countries of the organization still have different approaches regarding the feasibility of establishing a separate banking structure - the SCO Development Bank. Nevertheless, dialogue on this topic was very useful. Belarus has already supported the establishment of such a bank as a full member of the organization, and we will take an active part in consultations on this issue,” he said.
Belarus is also interested in international experience in digital currencies. “We are also working on this issue. We promised to introduce the digital Belarusian ruble in the middle of next year. Digital currencies are likely to play a key role in cross-border transactions in the future. Therefore, it is very important for us to avoid mistakes along the way, and the best practices of leading states are of crucial importance for us. This is not only China’s practices. We are studying the experience of many other countries – the United Arab Emirates, the Russian Federation – and adopt the best. Why is this important to us? Because that is the future. If we do not develop our national payment system based on blockchain technology, we will be forced to use foreign currencies. It is a threat to our sovereignty. I spent a lot of time in talks in China discussing this issue with specific organizations. Our Chinese friends responded very warmly to our request, and moreover, we received an invitation to training for experts - those who deal with the technical and organizational aspects of the issue,” the chairman of the Board of the National Bank said.
Belarus has been moving towards joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization for many years: it participated as a dialogue partner in the SCO since 2010 and as an observer since 2015. In July 2024, Belarus became a full member of the organization.
