PANews reported on January 14 that according to The Block, the Bank of England will launch the "Digital Pound Lab" this year as part of its blueprint for the design phase of a potential central bank digital currency (CBDC). The lab will operate in a sandbox environment to support practical experiments with CBDC APIs, innovative use cases, and potential business models. According to the Bank of England's digital pound progress report released on Tuesday, the lab will provide a platform for collaboration with private sector partners to explore functional and technological innovations. The program aims to provide valuable insights to the UK payment and technology sectors during the ongoing design phase.
The Bank of England stressed that it uses surveys and working groups to understand the needs and challenges of individuals and businesses; these efforts help identify pain points in existing payment systems, which the Digital Pound Lab will further explore. The lab will also assess the feasibility of specific use cases, focusing on technical and operational considerations. The insights gained will support the development of a potential digital pound as an innovation platform. As part of the plan, the Bank of England announced changes to its consultation framework. The Engagement Forum and Academic Advisory Group will continue to operate, while the Technology Forum will be phased out. Instead, technology-focused discussions will become more direct and detailed, driven by the Digital Pound Lab.