Money sits at the heart of our economy and everyday lives. Today, you can pay in many ways, including using banknotes issued by the Bank of England or electronically from your bank account. Whichever way you choose, you can always trust the value of the money you are spending or receiving.
A digital pound would be like a digital form of cash – a banknote for the digital era. Like banknotes, it would be issued by the Bank. You could hold your digital pounds in a digital wallet and spend them in shops or online.
It would be denominated in sterling and its value would be stable, just like banknotes. Ten digital pounds would always have the same value as a £10 banknote.
If introduced, it would not replace cash. We know using cash is important for many people. That is why we will continue to issue it as long as people want to keep using it. You would simply have even more choice when you make payments.
The digital pound would not be a cryptocurrency or cryptoasset, which are issued privately. The Bank would issue it and the Government would back it.
Just like the money you use today, your trust would be essential. Any future laws on a digital pound would guarantee users’ privacy and that neither the Bank nor the Government would be able to control how you spend your money. It would be your choice whether to use it or not.
In early 2023, we published a Consultation Paper, which explores the need for a digital pound and proposes a set of design choices. We received more than 50,000 responses and are grateful to all those who provided their thoughts. We published a response in January 2024.
The first digital pound progress update was published in January 2025. It summarises work over the past year, including how it relates to the evolving payments landscape, such as the recently announced National Payments Vision. You can find out more about our latest publications on our news page.
Next steps
We have not made a decision on whether we will introduce a digital pound. The earliest we would issue it would be the second half of this decade.
We are in a design phase, which will look at the technology and policy requirements. In this phase, we will test how it could work in the real world. This will bring to life innovative ways to use it so you can see how it might be useful and relevant to you. We will also carry out detailed assessments to work out exactly how a digital pound would operate.
At the end of this phase we will have enough information to make a decision on whether to move into a build phase. Parliament will also have a say before it is launched and we will hold further public consultation to make sure everybody can make their views heard.
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The way people pay is changing.
We are not using cash as much as we used to and digital payments are becoming more common.
On top of that, new forms of money are emerging and some could pose risks to financial stability.
The digital pound would be like an electronic version of the banknotes issued by the Bank.
We think it could help us maintain trust in money and protect our financial system, while also improving payments by increasing efficiency and helping innovation.
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We have not made a decision to introduce the digital pound. We are still exploring the possibilities. But if we decide to issue it, it will not be for a few years.
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It would not replace cash. Instead, we would like it to work alongside cash as we know that people may like to use both.
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Not in a traditional sense. You would not be able to open an account with the Bank of England. The way you would access digital pounds would be through a digital wallet provided by a private company. We think private companies are better placed to provide innovative products and services to the public.
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The same things you use your money for today, eg paying family and friends, buying goods in shops or online.
But new technologies are emerging, which we could incorporate into the design. This would allow wallet providers, from whom you would access the digital pounds, to invent tools to help you use your money in new ways.
These innovations could change the way people pay, making it faster and less expensive.
Wallets would be designed by private companies, such as banks or payment firms, and by new firms that appear over time. But digital pounds would be directly issued by the Bank of England, just like banknotes. You would have all the safety and security that you have with your money today.
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The Bank and the government would not collect any of your personal data and would not be able to see how you spent your digital pounds.
You would access them through a virtual wallet and you would have to share some personal data with your wallet provider. You would have a commercial relationship with your provider and they would require some form of ID to prevent financial crime or fraud.
Data privacy regulations would still be in force and neither the Bank nor the Government would have access to your personal data. -
Neither the Bank of England nor the Government would be able to program your digital pounds or restrict how you spent them. But you could program your own payments.
Today, this would allow you to make automated transactions, such as paying your rent or mortgage on a set day. It could also lead to exciting innovations.
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We would ensure it was protected to the highest standards from threats such as cyberattacks or power cuts.
The authorities and firms providing digital pound services would have a responsibility to ensure the digital pound helped prevent fraud, as with banknotes. Consumers would enjoy the same protections they have today.
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No – just as you would not earn interest on physical cash. A digital pound is designed for day-to-day spending and not for savings.
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No. You may have heard of cryptoassets (or cyptocurrencies) such as Bitcoin and Ether. These are issued privately, whereas the Bank would issue the digital pound. The value of cryptoassets can also be volatile, meaning it changes at short notice, so they are not very useful for making payments. The digital pound would have a stable value. That means that ten digital pounds would have the same value as a £10 banknote.
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No. It would be highly efficient and not use the same energy-intensive methods as Bitcoin, for example. A digital pound would be in line with the Bank's efforts to reduce its carbon footprint and meet its environmental targets.
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We would like everybody to be able to use it. Most people would access their digital pounds through a virtual wallet on their smartphone. But we are also looking at other ways, eg a physical card similar to a debit card.
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We think we would need to set a limit for how much people could hold. This would give us time to understand its possible impact on the financial system and help us avoid disruption.
Once we better understand it and how people use it, we would review this limit. We have not yet decided what it would be, but it would be high enough for day-to-day spending. So, you could receive all sorts of payments, such as your salary, without worrying.
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The Government has said it would introduce new laws to guarantee your privacy and control.
We are also working on ways to make sure safeguards for your privacy and control are built into the technology of the digital pound, if it goes ahead.
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There would be a vote in Parliament before any digital pound is launched in the UK. That means your MP would have a vote.
We started a public conversation on the digital pound in February 2023 by holding an extensive consultation. Tens of thousands of people responded, helping us understand how to design a better digital pound for you. And there will be more chances to have your say.
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This page was last updated 18 March 2025