HM Treasury said on August 27, 2026 that it plans to give the Bank of England a secondary objective to support innovation in payment systems and emerging forms of digital money. The financial stability mandate remains primary.
The new remit would cover payment systems that use digital settlement assets, a category that includes stablecoins. HM Treasury described the move as part of the UK stepping up its stablecoin work through regulatory changes and payment experiments.
The announcement is a proposal. The timeline and the final scope of the legislation have not yet been confirmed by the government.
If enacted, the measure would bring stablecoin-based payment systems under the Bank of England's framework, alongside its existing duties.