23rd October 2025

Explanation - 
MERCOSUR (Southern Common Market) was established in 1991 through the Treaty of Asunción to foster economic integration in South America. The founding members are Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Venezuela joined later in 2012 but was suspended in 2016. The bloc promotes free trade, customs union development, and the reduction of trade barriers among member countries to enhance regional economic cooperation. 

Explanation - 
UN-GGIM-AP, established in 1995 as PCGIAP, was rebranded in 2012 following the creation of UN-GGIM in 2011. It coordinates geospatial data policy across Asia-Pacific, supporting national agencies in integrating geographic information for socioeconomic development. It includes members from 56 countries, and since 2018, its secretariat is managed by the UN-ESCAP (not since inception). 

Explanation -
India’s CBDC (Digital Rupee) is issued by the RBI as legal tender in digital form. 

• The Wholesale CBDC (e₹-W) pilot was launched first in November 2022 for interbank settlements in G-Sec transactions. 

• The Retail CBDC (e₹-R) pilot was launched later in December 2022 for public transactions.
  The CBDC aims to create a sovereign digital currency to complement and provide a secure, regulated alternative to private cryptocurrencies and stablecoins. 

Explanation - 
Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies pegged to assets such as fiat currencies or commodities to reduce price volatility. They may be backed by fiat, crypto, or algorithmic models — not all are fully reserved. While they facilitate faster cross-border transactions, they also raise concerns over financial stability, risk of inadequate reserves, and potential “dollarisation” in developing markets due to heavy linkage with the US dollar. 

Explanation - 
The money we use (fiat currency) is backed by the state through its central bank and legitimised by law for payments, including taxes. Cryptocurrencies, however, are not backed by any sovereign authority and lack regulated valuation mechanisms. While the RBI expressed concerns about crypto misuse and temporarily restricted banking support in 2018, the Supreme Court struck down the ban in 2020, confirming that cryptocurrencies are unregulated but not illegal.