By Reuters Staff 2 Min Read JOHANNESBURG, May 25 (Reuters) - The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) is studying the benefits of issuing a digital currency for general retail purposes, it said on Tuesday, in line with several other central banks. A central bank digital currency, or CBDC, is a form of electronic cash linked to the sovereign currency on a one-to-one basis, with its value protected by the central banks’ monetary policy and inflation-targeting regime. It would allow businesses and individuals to make electronic payments directly backed by the federal bank. The SARB said it would “investigate the feasibility, desirability and appropriateness of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) as electronic legal tender, for general-purpose retail use, complementary to cash.”