Low smartphone penetration hits CBK’s digital shilling plan

The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has warned that lack of access to smartphones by more than half of mobile users in the country will hamper the rollout of its proposed digital currency that requires access to the Internet.

CBK Governor Patrick Njoroge said in an interview that the smartphone hitch might force the bank to delay the rollout of the central bank digital currency (CBDC) -- a virtual version of the shilling which will exchange on a one-to-one basis with physical cash.