Haiti CBDC Tracker

Haiti is currently in the research phase of its central bank digital currency (CBDC) development. The Bank of the Republic of Haiti has been receiving ongoing help from the International Monetary Fund to research CBDCs, but it has not moved beyond this point.

Current human rights and civil liberties concerns in Haiti include corruption. Pervasive corruption is a major concern with CBDCs because it calls into question any promises that the government might make to limit surveillance, control, or other risks of CBDCs.

CBDC History and Development

In 2021, Bank of the Republic of Haiti governor Jean Baden Dubois explained in an interview that the central bank was considering a CBDC, but had not launched a pilot or made a formal decision on whether to launch one.

In May 2022, it was reported that the companies EMTECH and HaitiPay presented a proof-of-concept CBDC at an event attended by officials from the Bank of the Republic of Haiti.  However, it’s unclear if the Bank of the Republic of Haiti had any involvement in the development of this proof-of-concept.

In July 2022, the International Monetary Fund published a report on its activities in Haiti. Among these activities, the International Monetary Fund “provided guidance to the Bank of the Republic of Haiti on the exploration of a retail CBDC, a priority goal of the [central bank].” The report also noted that the central bank was “receiving support from specialized firms” and requested further technical assistance. In the end, the International Monetary Fund provided the Bank of the Republic of Haiti with technical assistance evaluating CBDC from June 2022 to November 2022.

In December 2024, the International Monetary Fund published a report reviewing the “unprecedented multidimensional crisis encompassing humanitarian, economic, social, and security problems” taking place in Haiti. The topic of CBDC was mentioned briefly where it noted that the Bank of the Republic of Haiti “conveyed that it does not plan to immediately implement CBDC but stressed the importance of having put a placeholder in the central bank framework, in anticipation of future implementation.” The central bank’s staff felt that “devoting time and resources to considering a digital money is premature at this stage” given other pressing concerns.

Human Rights and Civil Liberties Concerns

Haiti currently has many issues regarding human rights and civil liberties. The country earned a 24 out of 100 in Freedom House’s 2025 Freedom in the World report. The biggest issue regarding the possible issuance of a CBDC in Haiti is the presence of government corruption. A CBDC could worsen this experience.

“Rampant corruption and violence by armed criminal groups undermine basic services and contribute to pervasive physical insecurity,” reported Freedom House. In fact, Freedom House went on to note that both the judiciary and law enforcement agencies lack the resources, independence, and integrity to maintain due process and the rule of law. Finally, Freedom House reported that “Haitians’ general distrust of the government stems in large part from the absence of transparency and accountability measures that are needed to reduce corruption.” The existence of pervasive corruption is a major concern with CBDCs because it calls into question any promises that might be made by the government to limit surveillance, control, or other risks of CBDCs. Furthermore, the existence of corruption calls into question whether CBDC policies might be designed to exert political favoritism through subsidies, price controls, or other targeted restrictions.

For additional information on concerns regarding violations of human rights and civil liberties, see the following reports by Amnesty International, Financial Tyranny Index, Freedom House, Human Rights Watch, Privacy International, and the U.S. Department of State. For additional information on concerns regarding the risks of CBDCs, see the following webpage and report by the Cato Institute: The Risks of CBDCs and Central Bank Digital Currency: Assessing the Risks and Dispelling the Myths.

For additional information regarding metrics, the methodology page explains each of the data points and provides their respective sources.