Economy

Morocco tests digital dirham for cross-border payments

Yesterday 14:59

By: Dakir Madiha

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Morocco has begun cautious but concrete trials of a central bank digital currency, as Bank Al‑Maghrib pilots a digital dirham for peer‑to‑peer and cross‑border transactions. Governor Abdellatif Jouahri has described the initiative as a strategic, gradual shift in payment infrastructure, supported by analytical work conducted with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in recent years.

Speaking at the 2025 seminar of the Association of African Central Banks in Rabat, Jouahri said the central bank had completed an initial pilot focused on small retail payments between individuals using a digital currency issued directly by the bank. A second trial is under way with the Central Bank of Egypt to test cross‑border transfers while maintaining prudential safeguards and regulatory oversight.

Legal assessments around the project suggest that any medium‑term framework is likely to impose limits on digital dirham balances in circulation, require segregation of reserves in dirhams and define the role of Moroccan depository institutions. These measures are intended to establish a clear regulatory perimeter for the currency’s use and prevent disruption to the traditional banking system.

The digital dirham initiative coincides with broader reforms to channel more transactions into regulated digital platforms. Morocco’s Foreign Exchange Office has authorised accredited agents to sell foreign currency through electronic terminals funded by international bank cards and to issue prepaid cards denominated in dirhams. Official data indicate that Moroccan spending abroad reached 21.6 billion dirhams through September 2025, nearly 8 percent higher than a year earlier, while cross‑border e‑commerce transactions rose by more than 20 percent over the same period, reflecting sustained growth in digital payments.

The central bank’s efforts also align with Morocco’s accession to the Pan‑African Payment and Settlement System, a regional platform designed to facilitate cross‑border clearing across Africa. Analysts view the digital dirham pilots and foreign‑exchange reforms as part of a wider strategy to modernise financial infrastructure and expand financial inclusion.

Regulation of the digital currency is expected to be shaped by a forthcoming national digital framework law introduced by Minister Delegate for Digital Transition Amal El Fallah Seghrouchni. The draft legislation rests on three main pillars: data governance, digital identity and interoperability. It strengthens existing personal data protection rules by tightening controls over data exchange between institutions and introducing sector‑based digital identity systems with traceable consent mechanisms. Cybersecurity forms a core element of the framework, which legal experts consider essential for building public confidence in a retail central bank digital currency.

Financial technology firms and payment providers are closely monitoring the project. Industry participants say authorities have prioritised experimentation and regulatory design over rapid deployment. For private providers, the key issue will be ensuring the digital dirham complements commercial bank services and preserves space for innovation in digital wallets and instant payments.

The digital currency trials form part of Morocco’s broader economic strategy to expand the digital sector and artificial intelligence by 2030, backed by multi‑billion‑dirham investment plans and job‑creation targets. By testing faster and more transparent cross‑border transfers backed by the state, policymakers aim to strengthen Morocco’s position as a fintech and payments hub in North Africa.