Philip Lowe, governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), has flagged the possibility of a central bank-backed form of digital currency in the future and welcomed the federal government announcement to overhaul the payments system. In an address to the Australian Payments Network Summit on Dec. 9, Lowe discussed the rising popularity of electronic payments through digital wallets. “The final destination is not yet clear here, but it is highly likely that digital wallets will become more important,” he said. The rising of digital wallets has led the RBA to consider the possibility of issuing “eAUD,” or a form of retail central bank digital currency. “To date, though, we have not seen a strong public policy case to move in this direction, especially given Australia’s efficient, fast, and convenient electronic payments system. “It is possible, however, that the public policy case could emerge quite quickly as technology evolves and …