Stablecoin Risks and Global Monetary Power

At Queen's University in Belfast, Carolyn Wilkins from the Bank of England's Financial Policy Committee delivered a speech on payment innovations and their impact on international money and power.

The focus was on stablecoins, which have similarities with local banknotes issued in the region. While stablecoins are often discussed in technical terms like blockchains and tokens, the bigger questions revolve around money and power.

Wilkins drew parallels between private digital money issuance and historical experiences to explore whether private digital money can operate safely at scale.

The speech also touched on the consequences of US dollar stablecoins becoming widely used and what that could mean for international monetary power.