Yesterday, the Algorand Corporation announced that one of the world’s first central bank digital currencies will be built on the Algorand commercial blockchain.

The Republic of the Marshall Islands, which gained independence from the United States in 1979, has developed plans for a state-backed digital currency, the Sovereign Marshall Token (SOV), which has been in development since February 2018.

The new currency is designed to reduce the small island’s dealings in US dollars, which is the republic’s current national currency.

David Poole, Assistant Minister to the President of the Marshall Islands, wrote in article In September 2019, noting that the islands are far from the rest of the world, a blockchain-based digital currency will also help reduce cross-border transaction fees.

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In a statement, Jim Wagner, co-founder and director of marketing for SFB Technologies, the company that produces digital currency for the Marshall Islands, said that Algorand was chosen because it has the functionality required to issue, manage and distribute SOVs globally.

This partnership ensures that the SOV is built on a scalable and secure platform.

The digital currency supply will grow at a rate of 4% each year, and will be offered through a pre-token sale, which is expected to start this year.

People can buy rights to the digital currency through auctions that will be issued after a specified period of time.

But not everyone is on board with the Marshall Islands’ plans to issue its own central bank digital currency.

For example, the International Monetary Fund sharply criticized the republic’s plans to issue a digital currency.

In a September 2018 report, the International Monetary Fund advised the country of the Marshall Islands not to issue digital currency, and warned of the potential costs from economic, reputational, anti-money laundering, terrorist financing and governance risks that might arise.

In November 2018, eight lawmakers voted a motion of no confidence in the then-current president, Hilda Heine, due in part to her decision to issue an SOV.

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However, it appears that the Republic of the Marshall Islands is ready to move forward.

Once the coin is logged into the blockchain, there is no going back.

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