Cash and Digital Converge at Silk Road Conference

The second edition of the Silk Road Cash & Payments Conference, organised by Currency Research, gathered 147 delegates from 31 countries and 76 organisations in Almaty between 15 and 17 September 2026. The event, themed 'Unifying the Payments Ecosystem: Balancing Cash and Digital for Inclusive and Resilient Connectivity', showed a shift in industry thinking since the first conference in 2023.

Three years earlier, discussions focused on cash and digital payments as separate developments. By 2026, the emphasis shifted to convergence. During nine sessions, including technical presentations, panel discussions, and site visits, delegates examined how cash infrastructure, digital payments, security technologies, and fraud prevention are becoming integral parts of a connected trust ecosystem.

The programme began with a pre-conference workshop examining tokenised money, including CBDCs, stablecoins, and tokenised deposits, and their advantages and disadvantages.