DLT Options for CBDC

This paper contributes to the debate on the design of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), focusing on the options for doing so using distributed ledger technology (DLT). We analyze the various structures for implementation offered by DLT - public, permissioned and private - and the implications that each has for the central bank and the existing financial system. While a CBDC built on an open, permissionless system would provide the full functionality offered by DLT, it is also far more disruptive to the existing financial system and consequently requires more new infrastructure on the part of the central bank. Within the current DLT landscape, public-private partnerships (PPPs) offer the most practical and efficient means of building a DLT-based CBDC. A selection of existing DLT providers able to support a CBDC is also discussed