The Bank of England is actively recruiting experts to build a team to develop the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), a project that is still in the research and development phase. An english newspaper reported that up to 30 professionals could be brought in to work on the project.
Bank of England’s website careers page lists positions for Digital Pound Security Architect and Digital Pound Solutions Architect. Both positions pay up to £80,000 ($99,000) in salary. The Treasury also advertised for a Head of Central Bank Digital Currency earlier this year.
Although the press has dubbed the digital pound “Britcoin,” the Bank of England is hesitant to use this name, and no decision has been made about the technology that will be used to implement the digital currency.
The Bank of England and the UK’s finance ministry have said that a digital pound could be in use by the end of the decade, with the hope that it will replace cash. However, this timeline may put the country behind other nations that have already launched their own CBDCs.
According to John Cunliffe, the bank’s deputy governor, the term “Britcoin” is not ideal for a digital currency, and the bank is exploring other options. “We don’t want to appear trendy,” he said. “We want to ensure that we’re doing this for the right reasons.”
CBDCs are becoming more prevalent globally, with several countries already launching their digital currencies. The Chinese digital yuan currency has been in use for some time now, while Jamaica recently launched its own CBDC.
The rise of CBDCs could have significant implications for the cryptocurrency sector, particularly as it pertains to the metaverse, a virtual world that operates on a blockchain. Experts believe that CBDCs could be used to power transactions within the metaverse, providing a more stable and secure form of digital currency than traditional cryptocurrencies.