The Bank of Jamaica revealed the name of its upcoming central bank digital currency (CBDC) after a design competition, but received backlash from the local cryptocurrency community.
The Central Bank of Jamaica announced on Twitter that it has chosen the name “Jam-Dex” along with a slogan and logo for its upcoming CBDC scheduled for late 2022. Although the project is promising, its name can be easily confused with decentralized exchange (DEX) and its logo is “terrible” according to the community’s response.
The name Jam-Dex is said to be taken from a Jamaican digital exchange with the slogan “no money, no problem”. He was selected as the winner by the central bank after a competition. Although the winner took home 600,000 Japanese dollars ($3,800), the community is somewhat unhappy with the outcome.
. Is this a CBDC or a DEX? And I appreciate the attempt at crowdsourcing the design – pretty Web 3 of you, but… that logo doesn’t work. It should have been a broader voting mechanism – the panelists let you down badly here – Jaymeon Jones (@Jaymeon__Jones) February 18, 2022
In the world of cryptocurrencies, “DEX” usually refers to a decentralized exchange. A decentralized exchange refers to an exchange where there is no centralized management but a network of peer-to-peer nodes. These nodes allow users to trade directly with each other without the involvement of intermediaries. In this model, the control of your funds is in your hands and you are trading directly with another person.
The local cryptocurrency community was very eager to see the rejected projects:
Can we see some of the rejected designs? — Zj Sparks 九 (@Sparkiebaby) February 17, 2022
Some other participants did not like the end result either:
Can’t believe it topped my design lol: image 2 (mines) pic.twitter.com/9qHdZPIFkF – Jamaican Investor (@Jamaican0071) Feb 17, 2022
Another user claimed that judges have “outdated” standards:
In fact, we have a problem when judges have outdated standards that scare away local designers who apply more international standards in their projects. — Jaded (@jeyd_ed) February 17, 2022
Others were simply concerned that the project would not be taken seriously because of its logo:
At the moment, the logo is terrible, no one will take you seriously, how seriously, you want to go in the most advanced state of money, but your logo was created by a 5-year-old mind, this is what you project why people who understand this space, will invest here — carib cryptocurrency (@OnceAga55838598) February 19, 2022
As reported by Cointelegraph, Jamaica has unveiled its plans to launch a CBDC in 2020 as an alternative to cryptocurrencies, making it one of the Caribbean nations to do so. The country’s central bank has singled out CBDCs and other cryptocurrencies, stating that cryptocurrencies do not fully meet the requirements of money and are not always supported by the main body.
Related: Central Bank of Kenya solicits public opinion on potential CBDC
Nigeria was one of the first countries in the world to launch a CBDC open to everyone. The United States is currently evaluating the prospects for a digital dollar. El Salvador, on the other hand, has taken a different approach. The Central American nation has fully embraced Bitcoin instead of developing its own digital currency.
