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Speaking to Finder at IBM Think 2019, IBM head of blockchain Jesse Lund revealed that 40-50 banks are expected to join the Stellar-based IBM World Wire service in the near future.

We’ve got a launch announcement coming out soon… we’re going to be supporting more than 50 countries out of the gate, 30-40 currencies, and enough market makers to drag along 30 or 40 banks, so we’ll have a significant portion of the world covered,” he explained.

Several banks have already confirmed that they plan to issue digital assets, including stablecoins of their own, through the Stellar-powered IBM World Wire.

“We’ve got letters of intent with several banks around the world to support and issue digital currencies, stablecoins and other currencies,” Lund confirmed.

“Our goal is to continue to expand that network and to provide global coverage within 3-5 years where you can actually send remittances in a consistent way, immediately, at a very low cost, from anywhere in the world to anywhere in the world.”

The next major announcement around this is likely to be on 19 March.

“I’ll be keynoting a major event in Singapore with my friend Jed McCaleb (Stellar founder)… we’ll be talking about the partnership together and making a special announcement about the product,” Lund says.

This major event is most likely the Money 20/20 conference in Singapore, whose schedule shows Jesse Lund and Jed McCaleb making a special announcement on Tuesday 19 March, at 9.40am local time (1.40am UTC).

Lund also said, very emphatically, that publicly accessible central bank digital currencies are en route.