Bitcoin vs Britcoin: Bank of England Reveals Launch Timeline of UK’s Own Cryptocurrency

Bitcoin vs Britcoin: In a statement, the BoE has said that it would work with the Treasury to evaluate the requirement for a UK Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), the Sky report says.

Written by: India.com Business Desk Edited by: Debjit Sinha

Published: November 10, 2021, 9:37 AM IST

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Earlier this year, UK Finance Minister Rishi Sunak told the Bank of England to look at the central bank-backed digital currency Britcoin, as per the Reuters report.

London: The Bank of England (BoE) will begin deliberations on blueprint for launching the country’s own cryptocurrency ‘Britcoin’ next year, according to a Sky report. However, the central digital currency will not be launched before 2025, Sky reported quoting the UK’s central bank.

UK to Launch Own Cryptocurrency

• In a statement, the BoE has said that it would work with the Treasury to evaluate the requirement for a UK Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), the Sky report says.
• British economic secretary John Glen has informed the Treasury that deliberations will look at the possible role of a central bank digital currency.
• This has come after the Deputy Governor of the UK’s central bank Jon Cunliffe had claimed that cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin might trigger financial crisis if the government does not impose strict regulations.
• Earlier this year, UK Finance Minister Rishi Sunak told the Bank of England to look at the central bank-backed digital currency Britcoin, as per the Reuters report.
• This was aimed to check the challenges posed by other cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. A digital currency backed by the UK’s central bank would pave way for business fraternity and consumers to have direct accounts with the BoE, the Reuters report had said.

The British Finance Minister had informed a financial industry conference that the government was launching a taskforce to coordinate on a potential CBDC.

Rise of Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin

Meanwhile, the global cryptocurrency market has hit the USD 3 trillion mark for the first time, taking Bitcoin and Ethereum values to an all-time high. Bitcoin and Ether created a new all-time high of USD 68,641.57 and USD 4,857.25 on Tuesday, as per an IANS report.