CBDC? No Thanks, Says BOE Governor 🙅‍♂️

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So, the Governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, is like, “Hey, do we really need a digital pound for regular folks?” And I’m like, “Good question, Andy!” I mean, what’s wrong with the pound we’ve got? It’s not like it’s going out of style or anything. 😂

Bailey was speaking at a conference in Kyiv, Ukraine (because, you know, that’s where all the cool central bankers go), and he said that while CBDCs have some neat features like smart contracts and better fraud protection, he’s just not convinced that we need a whole new digital currency to get those benefits. And honestly, who can blame him? It’s not like we’re all just dying to have our money digitized or anything. 🙄

But, of course, the BOE is still working on a wholesale CBDC for use between financial institutions, because, you know, those guys need all the help they can get. 😉 Bailey said they’re “well on the way” with that project, but he’s just not sold on the retail version. And I’m like, “Yeah, good call, Andy. Let’s not rush into anything here.”

“I start with the presumption that there should be benefit here – it seems like a failure of imagination if we think otherwise,” said Bailey. “That said, I remain to be convinced that we need to create new forms of money – such as Central Bank Retail Digital Currency – to achieve this.” Yeah, because, you know, we don’t want to just create new forms of money willy-nilly. That would be crazy! 😂

So, the BOE’s digital pound project has been getting a lot of flak from the public, with over 50,000 responses to their consultation. And let me tell you, people are concerned. They’re worried about privacy, the future of cash, and the possibility that the central bank could control how the currency is used. Yeah, because that’s exactly what we need – more control from the government. 🙄

And if that’s not enough, the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee has also been critical of the project, citing “significant risks and challenges” involved. Yeah, because, you know, those guys are always right. 😉 In their report, they said, “It is not clear to us at this stage whether the benefits are likely to outweigh these risks.” Yeah, no kidding. It’s not clear to me either. 🤔

So, the BOE is still in the design phase of their retail central bank digital currency, and they’re still deciding whether to move forward with it. And I’m like, “Take your time, guys. We’re not exactly dying over here.” 😂

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2025-06-20 16:12