Minutes: CBDC Academic Advisory Group – June 2025
In 2000, researchers made a discovery that touched off a revolution in disease treatment. They found a way to silence the mutated genes at the root of genetic disorders, a method called RNA interference (RNAi).
What is RNAi?
RNAi is a natural process that cells use to turn down, or silence, specific genes. It occurs in plants, animals, and humans, and serves as a defense mechanism against viral infections.
How does it work?
To execute RNAi, a cell creates small RNA molecules that match the sequence of a target gene. These small RNAs, called short interfering RNAs (siRNAs), latch onto the gene’s messenger RNA, marking it for destruction.
This gene silencing can be manipulated and directed at any gene of interest, providing an unprecedented level of precision in gene regulation.
Therapeutic applications
RNAi has the potential to treat a wide range of diseases, including:
- Cancer
- Neurological disorders
- Genetic conditions
- Infections
By selectively silencing the genes responsible for these conditions, RNAi offers a promising avenue for personalized medicine and targeted therapies.
Challenges and future prospects
Despite its immense potential, harnessing RNAi for therapeutic use faces several challenges, such as:
- Delivery of RNA molecules to target cells
- Off-target effects
- Immune system responses
Researchers are actively working to overcome these obstacles and unlock the full therapeutic power of RNAi. With ongoing advancements, RNAi holds the promise of revolutionizing the treatment of genetic diseases and beyond.
The future outlook
As the field of RNA interference continues to evolve, it is poised to shape the future of medicine and biotechnology. By unraveling the complexities of gene regulation, RNAi offers a path to precise, personalized therapies that could transform the landscape of healthcare.
The Central African Republic, or Centrafrique, is a landlocked country located in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the south, the Republic of the Congo to the southwest, and Cameroon to the west.
Overview
Despite its abundance of natural resources, such as diamonds, gold, and uranium, the Central African Republic is one of the poorest countries in the world. It has experienced political instability and conflict since gaining independence from France in 1960.
History
The history of the Central African Republic has been marked by coups, rebellions, and ongoing conflicts between various armed groups. The country has struggled with governance issues, human rights abuses, and widespread poverty.
Politics
The Central African Republic has faced numerous political crises, with frequent changes in government through coups and rebellions. The country has also struggled with issues of corruption, inefficient governance, and lack of basic services for its population.
Conflict
The Central African Republic has experienced recurring conflicts, often along religious and ethnic lines. Armed groups have been involved in violence, displacement of populations, and human rights abuses, leading to a humanitarian crisis in the country.
Humanitarian Issues
The Central African Republic faces significant humanitarian challenges, including high levels of poverty, food insecurity, limited access to healthcare and education, and ongoing displacement of communities due to conflict and violence.
ws.com/country/sudan”>Sudan
https://world.einnews.com/state/pennsylvania”>Pennsylvania
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Date: 11 June 2025
Item 1: Welcome
Nick McLaren (chair) welcomed members to the fifth meeting of the CBDC Academic Advisory Group. He gave a brief update on the upcoming Innovation in Money and Payments Conference highlighting the aim was to bring together academics, central bankers, and industry participants. He noted that the call for papers was open and encouraged members to consider participating and to share amongst their networks.
The chair highlighted recent Bank publications: a design note focusing on digital pound intermediaries and an experiment report on offline payments.
The chair outlined the agenda for the meeting where each of the five subgroups would give presentations updating the group on their work since the last meeting.
Item 2: Subgroup presentation – Financial & Monetary Stability
Subgroup headline question: Is a digital pound consistent with the BoE’s statutory objectives?
The subgroup explained that a key theme from their work has been considering the risks of low adoption and around a failure to incentivise enough intermediaries to offer digital pound services. But set against that, there are also considerable risks around inaction and not developing a digital pound. In their view it was, therefore, right for the Bank to take a proactive but cautious approach to the design phase. They introduced insights from existing surveys and models, particularly focusing on the topic of adoption and disintermediation of the banking sector.
On adoption, the subgroup highlighted challenges in CBDC-related modelling. Some approaches in the literature rely on theoretical assumptions based on other forms of money, or they use existing banking data. However, the subgroup proposed conducting surveys of households and businesses to improve the accuracy of models of CBDC adoption.
It was noted that early adopters of CBDC are likely to be individuals already using digital assets. This is reflected by some responses to consumer research summarised in the Annex of the digital pound Consultation Paper. They also cited findings from a survey by The Bundesbank, which suggested adoption would vary across the population, influenced by factors such as inflation expectations, demographics, and trust. Bank for International Settlements research highlighted that privacy expectations could also be a key determinant of adoption.
Turning to bank disintermediation, the subgroup noted an emerging consensus that CBDC could be welfare-enhancing, though it may also pose risks to financial stability. Two types of disintermediation were identified in the existing literature: slow (linked to CBDC substituting for bank deposits in normal times) and fast (associated with increased withdrawal risks during financial stress). The latter would pose greater risks to financial stability.
To explore these dynamics in greater detail, the subgroup presented a UK-focused agent-based model, aiming to identify likely CBDC adopters, estimate expected adoption, and therefore support an assessment of systemic risk implications.
The model does not include interoperability costs between different forms of money, as they are assumed to be zero. The model adopts Myerson’s binomial framework, where individuals make a binary choice whether to adopt CBDC or not based on an initial probability of successful adoption. Therefore, there is a need to reach a critical mass of adoption before network effects can take over in driving further adoption.
rring to users holding multiple wallets at different PIPs to increase utility while retaining control over their assets. Multi-homing offers both operational and competitive benefits, with one member illustrating how users could distribute funds depending on their financial objectives. However, it was noted that multi-homing could complicate the enforcement of regulatory standards, particularly around AML/KYC. The group debated whether the benefits of multi-homing outweighed the complexities and potential increase in systemic risk.
Members also considered the implications of tokenization on CBDC adoption and use cases. Tokenization could incentivise innovation by enabling programmable money, smart contracts, and automatic compliance. However, there were concerns about the regulatory challenges posed by embedding conditions directly into money itself, and whether this could broaden the role of central banks beyond monetary policy. Members noted they were eager to see further development in this area, particularly in applications requiring automated triggers or built-in compliance mechanisms.
The discussion concluded with the subgroup proposing a series of tests to evaluate the design of the digital pound, focusing on privacy, security, resilience, financial stability, innovation, cross-border interoperability, and consumer protection. These tests would feed into a broader impact assessment, providing evidence to guide subsequent design decisions and address potential risks. The subgroup reiterated the importance of ongoing dialogue between industry stakeholders, regulators, and the public to ensure a sustainable and inclusive digital pound ecosystem.
cation – the group highlighted the importance of clear communication on the digital pound’s features, benefits, and risks to build trust and manage expectations. Design choices, such as offline functionality and interoperability with existing systems, will influence both consumer and merchant adoption.
International interoperability – the group considered the potential for a UK digital pound to interoperate with other CBDCs, stablecoins, and private payment systems. Collaboration on standards and protocols may be necessary to enable cross-border payments and maintain financial stability.
Incentivising innovation and investment – balancing innovation with regulatory stability and risk management is crucial to encourage private sector investment in the digital pound ecosystem. Incentives such as sandboxes, regulatory guidance, and collaboration on use cases can support innovation while safeguarding financial integrity.
Communication – design features such as privacy, user defined programmability, settlement speed, and budgeting tools were identified as key levers for adoption. Communication strategies, particularly short educational videos, can improve consumer understanding and willingness to adopt. Behavioural economics suggests that awareness, trust, and perceived utility often outweigh rational cost-benefit analysis.
Chicken-and-egg problem – the group addressed the two-sided market dilemma: consumers won’t adopt without merchant acceptance, and vice versa. Three potential solutions were proposed:
- Interoperability with existing payment systems
- Incentives for early adopters
- Strategic partnerships with incumbent players
Policy and strategic considerations – the subgroup suggested a digital pound should be positioned as a strategic asset for the UK’s financial infrastructure. Delays in developing a digital pound could risk entrenching private alternatives and weakening public control over digital money ecosystems. Financial viability will depend on clear purpose, robust ecosystem design, and targeted adoption strategies.
Discussion
Members discussed that merchant service charges in the UK vary significantly by merchant size. Additional fees from facilitators can often increase costs for small businesses. One member noted the potentially regressive nature of the current system, where high-income consumers often benefit more from credit card rewards which are paid for through merchant fees, and ultimately consumers. This dynamic may partly reinforce a payment structure that favours cards over lower-cost alternatives such as a digital pound.
Concerns were raised about the business model for PIPs. Without clear revenue streams, participation may be unattractive for both incumbents and new entrants. The failure of PayM in the UK was cited as a cautionary example.
The importance of a balanced value proposition across consumers, merchants, and intermediaries was emphasised. It was noted that achieving lower fees for merchants, value-added services for consumers, and commercial viability for intermediaries is essential. The challenge of the Day 1 proposition, when user numbers and features could be limited, was also highlighted.
Members discussed the timeline for the potential launch of a digital pound. It was argued that too long a timeline risks entrenching private digital money solutions and weakening the UK’s strategic position. Some members felt a digital pound should be seen as a response to global competition and a tool for monetary sovereignty, not merely a technical upgrade.
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