One key reason the Bank of England is “likely” to issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC) is to ensure tech firms are not able to corner the market for payment systems, Jon Cunliffe said on February 7.

The BoE deputy governor said the process of digitisation to date has shown new products can be “adopted rapidly at scale”. Tech firms with large existing platforms can use network effects, economies of scale and scope, and data to gain an advantage over the competition, potentially creating