Finance · 19 May, 2026 · 2 min read
Bank of England Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden Says Tokenization Cuts Costs, Speeds Settlement
Tokenization could cut costs and speed settlement in UK markets. BoE and FCA issued a joint consultation seeking feedback on tokenization.
How the story is framed: cost/competition vs broad regulatory mandate.
8 of 10 outlets skipped it: digital Securities Sandbox: 16 firms passed first stage..
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The Crypto Times
“give the country’s financial sector its clearest tokenization mandate yet”Read the original ↗
Changes reader takeaway from product economics to regulatory architecture.
BoE backs tokenization
Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden told London’s City Week on Tuesday that tokenization—the representation of assets and money on digital ledgers—could reduce costs, speed settlement, and improve the functionality of payments and financial markets. Breeden said central bank money will remain the “anchor” of the monetary system even as tokenized deposits, regulated stablecoins, and potentially a retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) become part of the payment mix.
She framed the policy focus as supporting new forms of digital money without weakening trust in the monetary system, while also calling for trust and interoperability to be preserved. The Bank of England’s CBDC Academic Advisory Group said in January that "retail CBDC is not strictly required to preserve uniformity, but may play a valuable supporting role, particularly as transactional use of cash declines."
Settlement hours shift
On Monday, the Bank of England proposed extending the operating hours of its core settlement infrastructure to near 24/7 availability, saying longer operating hours would help support cross-border payments and securities settlement. The proposal is designed to better accommodate tokenized assets and evolving digital-asset workflows, with the aim of reducing friction created by legacy financial market rails that operate around fixed business-day schedules.
Breeden’s remarks also followed earlier this month comments that the Bank was reconsidering its approach to pound-sterling-denominated stablecoins, including whether to ease limits on how much consumers can hold. The Crypto Times described the regulators’ joint commitments as including a live synchronization service targeted for 2028 and work to enable tokenized equivalents of already eligible assets to be used as collateral at central counterparties and in its own central bank operations.T
FCA and BoE consult
The Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority began a joint consultation, with regulators saying it is time for the public and private sectors to use technology in financial infrastructure to stimulate economic growth and innovation. The consultation sets July 3, 2026 as the deadline for responses, and the FCA and Bank of England said they will hold industry workshops and publish a feedback statement in the summer of 2026.
“Market players have until July 3 to respond to the consultation.”
The Crypto Times said the initiative includes a Digital Securities Sandbox where 16 firms have passed the first stage and are working toward going live, with the DSS expected to remain operational until December 2028 and the application window expected to close around March 2027. TIn an emailed statement to The Crypto Times, Coinbase’s Katie Harries said, "Fantastic to see the UK setting out a clear vision for tokenisation in wholesale markets," and called for the ambition to reach the “unbrokered.”T