The future of money is more certain with strong public support for cold, hard cash.
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Feedback gathered by the Reserve Bank over the past few years indicates cash is still king for a broad cross-section of the public, although its use has dropped with the increased use of digital payment methods.
Reserve Bank of New Zealand director of money and cash Ian Woolford said the organisation had published a summary of responses received on three issues papers about the future of cash and the possibility of setting up a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).
"Feedback ... reinforced the importance of the privacy aspects of central bank money, and that this should be a critical feature of any potential Central Bank Digital Currency for New Zealand."
He said no decisions have been made on the redesign of the cash system, but the feedback will be factored in.
"We are particularly focused on progressing concrete steps to improve resilience and efficiency in the cash system. We will continue to explore [the possibility of introducing a CBDC] through further policy, research, experimentation, and proof-of-concept work."
More announcements about the direction the Reserve Bank will take in these areas will come in the next six months, including 'firmer proposals' for public consultation, he said.