CBDC-related positions open up as Bank of England digital pound plans move forward

England’s central bank is marching on with its research into a central bank digital currency. While it has yet to announce that it will launch a CBDC, the bank has advertised new positions related to its CBDC research. They include a stakeholder analyst, project analyst, solution architect and a senior manager for CBDC technology.

Under the leadership of the former governor Mark Carney, Bank of England (BoE) took a wait-and-see stance on CBDCs. Carney claimed before leaving office that a CBDC could present “significant challenges” for the U.K. economy if introduced.

However, in recent times, the BoE has adopted a more progressive approach to CBDCs. In the latest move, the bank has advertised six job positions related to CBDCs. It describes the positions as geared towards “helping the team develop its priorities and exploratory work plan for CBDC.”

The BoE notes that the CBDC positions are purely for research purposes and that it has yet to decide on whether it will issue a CBDC.

“Like many other central banks, the Bank of England is actively exploring whether it should develop and issue a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). No decision has yet been taken on whether or not a CBDC is needed in the U.K., but it is an important topic for the Bank to understand.”

The six positions will work towards analyzing the monetary policy and financial stability risks and opportunities of a CBDC, as well as its broader economic choices. They will also analyze the potential use cases of a CBDC, engage with other government agencies and the public, collaborate with other central banks and work with merchants to determine what features of a CBDC would accelerate its adoption.

As CoinGeek reported two weeks ago, the BoE announced that it had established a CBDC taskforce. The bank partnered with Her Majesty’s Treasury on the initiative. While announcing the taskforce, the BoE sought to make it clear that the CBDC would not negatively affect the currency financial system.

“It [CBDC] would exist alongside cash and bank deposits, rather than replacing them,” the bank stated.

To learn more about central bank digital currencies and some of the design decisions that need to be considered when creating and launching it, read nChain’s CBDC playbook.

See also: CoinGeek Live panel, The Future of Banking, Financial Products & Blockchain