We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners who may combine it with other information that you’ve provided to them or that they’ve collected from your use of their services.
Necessary cookies help make a website usable by enabling basic functions like page navigation and access to secure areas of the website. The website cannot function properly without these cookies.
_cfuvidThis cookie is a part of the services provided by Cloudflare - Including load-balancing, deliverance of website content and serving DNS connection for website operators.
Maximum Storage Duration: SessionType: HTTP Cookie
__cf_bm [x7]This cookie is used to distinguish between humans and bots. This is beneficial for the website, in order to make valid reports on the use of their website.
CookieConsentStores the user's cookie consent state for the current domain
Maximum Storage Duration: 1 yearType: HTTP Cookie
Preference cookies enable a website to remember information that changes the way the website behaves or looks, like your preferred language or the region that you are in.
We do not use cookies of this type.
Statistic cookies help website owners to understand how visitors interact with websites by collecting and reporting information anonymously.
We do not use cookies of this type.
Marketing cookies are used to track visitors across websites. The intention is to display ads that are relevant and engaging for the individual user and thereby more valuable for publishers and third party advertisers.
We do not use cookies of this type.
Unclassified cookies are cookies that we are in the process of classifying, together with the providers of individual cookies.
List of domains your consent applies to: [#BULK_CONSENT_DOMAINS#]
Cookie declaration last updated on 8/12/26 by Cookiebot
[#IABV2_TITLE#]
[#IABV2_BODY_INTRO#]
[#IABV2_BODY_LEGITIMATE_INTEREST_INTRO#]
[#IABV2_BODY_PREFERENCE_INTRO#]
[#IABV2_BODY_PURPOSES_INTRO#]
[#IABV2_BODY_PURPOSES#]
[#IABV2_BODY_FEATURES_INTRO#]
[#IABV2_BODY_FEATURES#]
[#IABV2_BODY_PARTNERS_INTRO#]
[#IABV2_BODY_PARTNERS#]
About
Cookies are small text files that can be used by websites to make a user's experience more efficient.
The law states that we can store cookies on your device if they are strictly necessary for the operation of this site. For all other types of cookies we need your permission.
This site uses different types of cookies. Some cookies are placed by third party services that appear on our pages.
You can at any time change or withdraw your consent from the Cookie Declaration on our website.
Learn more about who we are, how you can contact us and how we process personal data in our Privacy Policy.
Please state your consent ID and date when you contact us regarding your consent.
The Bank of England’s Digital Pound Lab is testing whether stablecoins and a potential digital British pound can operate within the same cross-border payment flow as part of an experiment focused on trade finance.
The experiment involves NOBO Finance, Dun & Bradstreet and Polygon Labs, with an exporter receiving an advance via a stablecoin rail while a UK importer completes settlement using simulated digital pounds, according to a Wednesday announcement from the three companies.
The project also includes a separate workstream aimed at creating reusable credit profiles for small businesses by combining transaction data, open-finance information and Dun & Bradstreet’s commercial risk data, with Polygon providing the smart contract infrastructure.
The test is aimed at reducing settlement delays and financing constraints for small- and medium-sized businesses engaged in cross-border trade. Exporters can wait days to receive payment after shipping goods, tying up working capital and making access to trade finance particularly important for smaller firms.
The Digital Pound Lab uses no real customers or money, and the Bank of England has not committed to issuing a digital pound. The central bank has said that participant-designed experiments in the lab should not be interpreted as indications of future bank policy or as endorsements of the companies or their products.
Related: UK regulators to prepare tokenized gold framework: Report
UK pushes ahead with stablecoin, tokenization framework
The Digital Pound Lab experiment comes as UK regulators develop rules for stablecoins while preparing the country’s financial infrastructure for a broader shift toward tokenized assets.
In June, the Bank of England published draft rules for sterling-denominated stablecoins considered systemic to the UK financial system. The proposal allows issuers to hold as much as 70% of their reserves in interest-bearing government debt and introduces a temporary 40-billion-pound ($52.8 billion) issuance cap for each systemic stablecoin, replacing previously proposed limits on individual and business holdings.
The central bank aims to finalize the rules by the end of 2026 ahead of a planned 2027 rollout. Stablecoins deemed systemic, meaning their use is significant enough to potentially pose risks to UK financial stability, would fall under the Bank of England’s regulatory regime, while non-systemic stablecoins would remain under the country’s Financial Conduct Authority.
Systemic stablecoins entail payments and retail-focused tokens. Source: Bank of England
The regulatory work is unfolding alongside efforts to modernize traditional payment infrastructure. In May, the BoE proposed moving its Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and Clearing House Automated Payments System (CHAPS) toward near-24/7 operation, including weekend and extended daily hours, in part to support cross-border payments and new settlement models as tokenization develops.
In July, the central bank also approved HSBC’s Orion platform to operate in the UK’s Digital Securities Sandbox, where it is expected to support digital bond issuance, including the country’s planned Digital Gilt Instrument.
Magazine: El Salvador’s Bitcoin experiment turns 5: ‘It was for us, not them’
