Today 7th Feb 2023 the Bank of England launched a digital pound consultation paper. The consultation will be overseen by a joint CBDC task force of BoE and HM Treasury which was set up in April 2021.
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| BoE digital £ consultation |
The BoE website says:
"The digital pound would be a new form of sterling, similar to a digital banknote, issued by the Bank of England. It would be used by households and businesses for their everyday payments needs. It would be used in-store, online and to make payments to family and friends. If introduced, it would exist alongside, and be easily exchangeable with, cash and bank deposits."
This ties in with the recent opportunity for employment with the Civil Service as Head of Central Bank Digital Currency. Application date closes today 7th Feb.
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| Head of Digital Currency vacancy |
The website comments that the fact that Central Bank Digital Currency will be needed in the future is what justifies this preparatory work.
The system of international payments between banks known as Swift is already going down this digital route and launches on 20th March 2023 The new standard seems to have the not-so-catchy title ISO 20022
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| iso20022 |