LONDON, March 22 (Reuters) - The Bank of England will set upits own fintech hub to find ways to use the kind of technologythat has spawned digital currencies such as bitcoin and whichcould eventually help boost Britain's economy, a top BoEofficial said on Thursday."Today I can announce that we have set up a new fintech hubthat will sit at the heart of the Bank, to consider both how theBank understands and how it applies fintech, relevant to itsmission," Deputy Governor Dave Ramsden said.
"It is important that we continue to do this with our doorsfirmly open," Ramsden, who is deputy governor for markets andbanking, said in a speech he was due to deliver to a fintechconference in London.
He said the hub would be a central point of contact for thefintech sector and would play a role in a new taskforceannounced earlier on Thursday by Britain's government which isseeking to keep London's edge as a global financial centre, evenas the country leaves the European Union.
Earlier this month, Bank of England Governor Mark Carneysaid crypto-currencies such as bitcoin had failed as a form ofmoney, but he said the technology could improve the financialsystem in future.
In his speech on Thursday, Ramsden said the rise of fintechcould help Britain improve its long-standing problem of weakproductivity growth as well as help the BoE improve its internalinfrastructure.
"As a member of the Monetary Policy Committee, I need to beopen minded about the way fintech could impact the economy ofthe UK," he said.
"The defining trend of the last 10 years has been theweakness of productivity. Given the size of the financial sectorin the UK, I can see fintech driving competition and a pick-upin productivity in the medium term."(Writing by William SchombergEditing by Alison Williams)