Key Takeaways




The authorities have sought public comment on the idea of introducing a CBDC



The Bank of England and UK Treasury would seek to develop a modernized digital payments system that does not negate the use of cash.




On Monday, UK authorities announced that they are considering introducing a Britcoin-digital version of the pound soon. In a public statement, Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt stated that the Bank of England(BoE) and UK Treasury would seek to develop a modernized digital payments system that does not negate the use of cash.



The authorities have also sought public comment on the idea of launching a CBDC-central bank digital currency. Reportedly, following further technical research, a decision on launching the digital pound will be made around 2025, with a potential launch towards the end of this decade.



Commenting on the development, BOE Governor Andrew Bailey stated that a “digital pound would provide a new way to pay, help businesses, maintain trust in money, and better protect financial stability.”



“While cash is here to stay, a digital pound issued and backed by the Bank of England could be a new way to pay that’s trusted, accessible, and easy to use,” UK Treasury chief Jeremy Hunt’s statement reads.



The Treasury stated that the needs of vulnerable people are being considered in the design process to ensure Britcoin would be simple to use and both understood and trusted as a form of money. According to BoE, the proposed CBDC would be denominated in pounds, with 10 pounds of digital currency always equal to a 10-pound note, and will be held in a digital wallet.



As part of introducing CBDC, the UK’s central bank is already conducting research, including a wallet project and developing an API to enable payment providers to connect to a CBDC system.



Crypto adoption is slowly spiking in the UK as the government is keen on luring crypto investors into the country. In April 2022, Rishi Sunak(the current UK PM), as Chancellor of the Exchequer of UK, announced plans to make the country “a global crypto-asset technology hub.”



In 2021, it was Sunak who proposed a “Britcoin” to come into play across the UK economy by 2025. With this appointment as UK PM, the crypto industry is hoping the country comes up with more crypto-friendly regulations to spike people’s interest in crypto and digital assets.