The Bank of England has announced that they are now accepting applications for a “proof of concept” Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) wallet.
This wallet is expected to be able to perform fundamental functions such as transacting value and requesting payments, with a budget of approximately $255,000 allocated to the project.
The proof-of-concept wallet was set out with the expectation that it would provide basic features such as signup, details updating, balance and transaction viewing, notifications, CBDC loading and unloading, peer-to-peer payments via account ID or QR code, and the capability to make online payments to businesses.
The goal of this project is to gain an understanding of the entire user experience in relation to a CBDC, so that the BOE can better define what is needed from itself and the private sector.
The bank has not done any work on a sample wallet and will not build one itself.
The deliverables of the project include creating an Android and iOS mobile application, a wallet website, a merchant website model, and the backend infrastructure to support the wallet site and apps, store user data, and keep track of transactions.
A budget of $244,500 or 200,000 British pounds has been allocated for a five-month proof-of-concept project. The Bank of England is responsible for evaluating the five suppliers who have applied. Currently, there are no applicants.
