Former Bank of England Deputy warns of “Programmable Money” as UK moves toward Digital Pound

LONDON — Former Bank of England Deputy Governor Sir Jon Cunliffe has compared the concept of a UK central bank digital currency (CBDC), informally dubbed “Britcoin,” to giving children pocket money that can be programmed to restrict what they can buy.

Speaking about the potential of programmable digital currencies, Cunliffe said:

“It’s like giving your children pocket money, but programming the money so that it couldn’t be used for sweets.”

He added that such forms of digital money could be designed to release funds only under specific conditions:

“These new forms of money offer the ability for them to be… programmed to be released only when something happened. There’s a whole range of things programmable money could do which we can’t do with the current technology.”

The Bank of England and HM Treasury are currently exploring the introduction of a digital pound to complement physical cash. Officials argue that a CBDC could modernize payments and improve financial inclusion.

However, critics warn that CBDCs would require a digital identity system to function — and, when combined, the two could enable unprecedented state oversight of personal spending.

Analysts and privacy advocates fear such systems could pave the way for social credit mechanisms or personal carbon allowances, allowing authorities or algorithms to approve, restrict, or block transactions based on behaviour, location, or carbon footprint.

In this scenario, every transaction becomes a checkpoint, where payments could be denied or accounts frozen for actions such as refusing a vaccine mandate, sharing politically incorrect opinions, or exceeding one’s carbon budget.

While supporters frame CBDCs as a leap forward in monetary innovation, opponents see the potential for total financial surveillance and control — raising fundamental questions about privacy, freedom, and the future of money in a digital age.