BoE reports on digital pound developments and implementation

The Bank of England (BoE) has published a series of documents regarding its work on implementing the digital pound. The Digital Pound Experiment Report on Offline Payments assesses the technical feasibility of implementing an offline payment functionality for a digital pound to ensure that the digital pound can be used without an internet connection, enhancing its accessibility and resilience. While it might be technically feasible, there are trade-offs, particularly around user experience and preventing double spending and counterfeiting, that make implementing it challenging. No final decision has been made yet on whether an offline payment functionality will be implemented. The minutes of the CBDC Engagement Forum (November 2024) sets out continued stakeholder discussions on the progress of the digital pound, highlighting the benefits for consumers and merchants, such as innovation and cost efficiency, but also the challenges, including ensuring strong performance at all levels of payment volume, operational costs and security and network connectivity issues. The Intermediary Roles and Scheme Rulebook Design Note outlines the roles and responsibilities of digital pound intermediaries and a preliminary conceptual framework for a digital pound rulebook (or similar document) to support the proper management of the digital pound if launched.

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