Bank of England seeks to accelerate blockchain research

The UK has been at the forefront of exploring blockchain technology, and a new FinTech accelerator set up by the Bank of England is looking at other ways to explore blockchain.

At an event in London this week, Bank of England chief cashier Victoria Cleland discussed the central bank’s efforts in financial technology, which include the creation of a startup accelerator focused on financial applications.

Currently, the Bank of England is seeking to study the concept of digital currency based on distributed ledgers. In addition, the institution is looking for more potential application projects.

Cleland said:

“Distributed ledger technology is still in its infancy and there are still many questions that need to be answered. Central banks have already conducted proofs of concept using this technology and we look forward to exploring new opportunities through our FinTech Accelerator.”

In June, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney called central bank-issued digital currencies a “significant” possibility.

At the time, he wrote:

“Distributed ledgers have the potential to increase resilience for central banks. Distributed ledgers mean that there can be multiple copies of a system, so if one part is knocked out, the whole system will continue to work. This removes the single point of risk that is present in centralized systems.”

At the end of July, the UK House of Lords Committee also held a discussion on blockchain technology, discussing the impact of blockchain technology on finance and government work in a curious and critical tone.