PANews reported on May 20th, citing Cointelegraph, that Bank of England Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden stated that tokenization can reduce settlement costs, speed up transactions, and promote competition, provided trust and interoperability are ensured. Breeden emphasized that even amidst the development of private sector innovations such as tokenized deposits and regulated stablecoins, central bank money will remain the cornerstone of the monetary system. She stated that the Bank of England is working with industry, government, and regulators to build a framework that supports innovation without undermining financial stability. Breeden said that in addition to traditional bank deposits, people should be able to use tokenized deposits, regulated stablecoins, and retail central bank digital currencies for payments, and increased competition in technologies and business models will reduce user costs and improve functionality.

On Monday, the Bank of England also proposed extending the operating hours of its core settlement infrastructure to nearly 24/7 to support cross-border payments and securities settlement.