Bank for International Settlements hiring blockchain expert for digital currency

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The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is hiring a blockchain engineer to work on research initiatives around digital currencies, according to reports.

The organization, dubbed “the central bank of central banks,” recently posted an advert for a blockchain expert, suggesting they are preparing to accelerate their work on researching and developing central bank digital currencies.

The job ad is searching for applicants with an intimate understanding of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, as well as experience in coding and a background in computer science, with the promise of a three-year contract for the successful applicant.

The successful applicant will work from the BIS Innovation Hub in either Switzerland or Hong Kong, where they will be tasked with developing and testing new initiatives to proof-of-concept. While there is no precise specification of the nature of the projects envisaged by the BIS, there is the suggestion this could include central bank digital currencies, digital securities and similar token systems for payments.

It follows from remarks last year from BIS general manager Augstin Carstens, a notable critic of digital currency, in which he said central banks were still “not seeing the value” in CBDCs, primarily due to concerns about their impact on the financial and monetary systems.

The Bank of International Settlements is already known to be exploring a number of projects around distributed ledger technology, including efforts around the tokenization and digitalization of trade.

The hiring drive comes at a time of increasing interest in CBDCs from central banks, as a growing number turn their attention to the benefits of a centrally issued digital currency on the blockchain.

As part of the role, the successful candidate will be expected to liaise with central banks and private banks in developing BIS projects.

To learn more about central bank digital currencies and some of the design decisions that need to be considered when creating and launching it, read nChain’s CBDC playbook.