Asian Tech Press (Feb 6) -- The Bank of England and Britain's finance ministry are about to give strong support to the "digital pound," setting out a roadmap for introducing a new central bank digital currency by 2030.

An unpublished government report shows that the Bank of England (BoE) and the UK Treasury judge that the UK may need the digital pound in the future, but it is too early to commit to building the infrastructure for it, according to the Daily Telegraph.

The digital pound would use the blockchain technology currently used by cryptocurrencies to record transfers on a central digital ledger, which would theoretically allow banks to issue new currencies directly to individuals or businesses digitally.

The BoE and the Treasury will launch a four-month consultation, at which time they will invite businesses, academics and the wider public to give their views on the launch of the digital pound.

In addition, they will begin the "design" phase of the project to develop a blueprint for how to build and use the digital pound.

The Daily Telegraph said a digital currency will take several years to create, and British officials have identified 2025 as the earliest date when the central bank can start building and testing prototypes of the digital pound, while the earliest date for the official launch of the currency is 2026-2030.