<p>France is looking to test central bank-issued digital currency in 2020, according to news site AFP. </p> <p>In a Wednesday conference <a href="https://twitter.com/banquedefrance/status/1202220243294273552?s=20">hosted</a> by the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (ACPR), the central bank's governor François Villeroy de Galhau said that the bank will start testing digital currency soon and "will launch a call for projects before the end of the first quarter of 2020," per the <a href="https://twitter.com/AFP/status/1202241148133068801?s=20">AFP report</a>. </p> <p>According to Villeroy de Galhau, France is keen on contributing to the digital currency innovation. However, he also <a href="https://twitter.com/banquedefrance/status/1202217934560608256?s=20">cautioned</a> that the country needs to experiment with the new technology "in a serious and methodical manner." </p> <p>The news came on the heels of France's Minister of the Economic and Finance Bruno Le Maire <a href="https://www.theblockcrypto.com/linked/39628/france-calls-for-eu-crypto-rules-and-creation-of-a-public-digital-currency">calling</a> for the creation of a "public digital currency" at a European Union (EU) meeting. The minister previously <a href="https://www.theblockcrypto.com/post/39465/france-to-block-development-of-facebooks-libra-crypto-says-minister">expressed</a> his opposition against Facebook's cryptocurrency project Libra, saying that France would block the project if it fails to address concerns over the potential threat it poses to monetary sovereignty. </p> <p>Meanwhile, People's Bank of China is also experimenting with its own digital currency, DC/EP. The bank said that it has been researching this new technology since 2014 and is "<a href="https://www.theblockcrypto.com/linked/35493/chinas-central-bank-digital-currency-is-ready-after-5-years-of-development">almost ready</a>" to launch it. However, a recent announcement from the bank <a href="https://www.theblockcrypto.com/linked/46968/chinas-central-bank-says-it-is-still-researching-and-testing-digital-currency-launch-reports-are-fraudulent">clarified</a> that it is still testing and researching the digital yuan, without disclosing the launch date.</p>