Trade association UK Finance has rolled out the pilot phase of a project that will deliver the first set of tokenized sterling deposits, as per an official press release. Slated to run till mid-2026, this pilot is expected to establish the U.K. as a leader in payment technology.
Specifically, the pilot will target a set of use cases that are person-to-person payments, reduced fraud, improved confidence among buyers and sellers, improved transparency, and digital asset settlement.
“This project is a powerful example of industry collaboration to deliver next generation payments for the benefit of customers and businesses – and an opportunity for the UK to lead globally in setting standards for tokenised money,” said UK Finance Managing Director Jana Mackintosh.
The UK Finance represents the country’s finance and banking sector and is the combination of several industry bodies such as the British Banker’s association, Payments UK, the Council of Mortgage Lenders, and others. It represents 300+ firms and is a key negotiator with government bodies for its members.
Multiple financial services firms are taking part in the initiative, such as Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, NatWest, Nationwide, and Santander, coupled with support from Quant, EY, and Linklaters.