The Bank of England (BoE) recently accelerated plans to develop a U.K. Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), or digital pound as they are often known. This news saw Ian Taylor, Board Advisor at CryptoUK comment that the numbers sought, 30 people to work on the project, showed how serious the BoE was on the matter. Besides this, the Treasury opened a public consultation on the digital pound in February, asking people to share their thoughts before the June 7 deadline.

Understandably, public opinion on CBDCs is usually negative due to concerns about financial privacy and certain freedoms. The BoE is aware of this, but still feels that a digital pound is needed in an ever-increasingly digital world, in order to improve different payment options. One of the main questions being asked is the difference between regular payments and what the digital pound can bring. The likely difference would be the ability to electronically transfer cash from wallet to wallet without the need for a bank account or a payment provider. However it is likely that users will face restrictions on the number of digital pounds they can hold, until the full impact on the financial sector is understood.

While digital pounds may appear more efficient and convenient, decentralization advocate Chris Blec warns that the down-side is that these currencies can ‘eliminate our financial privacy and micro-manage out lives'. He therefore calls on people to resist by investing in decentralized cryptocurrency like Bitcoin and in supporting anti-CBDC politicians.

Clearly there is much to debate and careful consideration needs to be take with regards to CBDCs and the digital pound. The outcome of the Treasury consultation in June could provide a crucial insight into how the project moves forward in the future.



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