The Bank of England and UK Treasury have launched a consultation on the design of the proposed digital pound and could roll out the central bank digital currency (CBDC) during the second half of the decade, according to bank and government officials... More
The Bank of England has issued a tender inviting suppliers to design and produce a proof of concept central bank digital currency (CBDC) wallet, sample user and merchant websites and a back-end server that can be implemented as a prototype for future user testing of a digital pound in the UK... More
Financial inclusion, creating a competitive ecosystem, comparison with other payment innovations, user privacy and monetary and financial stability will be the five core principles that guide the Bank of England’s future exploration and development of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the UK, the financial institution has revealed... More
The UK Treasury and the Bank of England have established a central bank digital currency (CBDC) taskforce to coordinate research into the benefits, risks and practicalities of introducing a digital pound... More
A working group set up by seven central banks and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has laid out a set of ground rules for the successful issuance of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs)... More
The Bank of Canada, the Bank of England, the Bank of Japan, the European Central Bank, the Sveriges Riksbank and the Swiss National Bank, together with the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), are to work together “to assess potential cases for central bank digital currencies”... More
New economy, new finance, new bank — Bank of England — “The Bank of England is in the midst of an ambitious rebuild of the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system — the backbone of every payment in the UK… RTGS is being re-built so that new private payment systems, including those using distributed ledger, can simply plug into our system… No longer will access to central bank money be the exclusive preserve of banks.”
Bank halts crypto-currency plans over stability fears — FT Adviser — “The Bank of England (BoE) has been researching the possibility of launching its own digital currency to rival bitcoin, but fears about the impact on the wider financial system means it has no ‘current plans’ to do so… If the central bank launched a digital currency of its own, it worried consumers would stop using commercial bank accounts and, instead, have a bank account with the Bank of England, and choose to use digital technology to purchase goods and services over paper money.”
Beyond blockchain: What are the technology requirements for a central bank digital currency? — Bank Underground — “What type of technology would you use if you wanted to create a central bank digital currency (CBDC) ie a national currency denominated, electronic, liability of the central bank? It is often assumed that blockchain, or distributed ledger technology (DLT), would be required; but although this could have some benefits (as well as challenges), it may not be necessary.”
Insights into the future of cash — Bank of England — “The value of Bank of England notes in circulation peaked in the run-up to Christmas 2016, reaching over £70bn for the first time — an increase of 10% on a year earlier. This is the fastest growth we’ve seen in a decade, and a giant leap compared to the £2.9bn when the ATM was born.”
The Bank of England has begun rolling out plastic £5 (US$6.59) notes across the UK... More
The Bank of England is consulting external experts on research designed to help set future policy which includes considering the effects of issuing its own Bitcoin-like digital currency... More
