Link to survey: https://brc.org.uk/media/179489/payment-survey-2016_final.pdf 20 The reward for each new block halves every 210,000 blocks (approximately every 4 years) and currently stands at 12.5 bitcoin per block. This regular halving of the block reward results in an exponential slow-down in the growth rate of Bitcoin supply. It is estimated that by 2040 99.8% of total maximum Bitcoin supply will have been generated. 21 For Bitcoin energy usage, see: https://digiconomist.net/bitcoin-energy-consumption. For Scottish energy usage, see http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Business/Energy/EIS2018 22 For Visa’s energy usage, see their Corporate Social Responsibility Report (2016). 19  8  All speeches are available online at www.bankofengland.co.uk/speeches  8  Virtually non-existent Units of Account Given that they are poor stores of value and inefficient and unreliable media of exchange, it is not surprising that there is little evidence of cryptocurrencies being used as units of account. Retailers that quote in Bitcoin usually update at very high frequency so as to maintain stable prices in traditional currencies such as US dollars or sterling. The Bank is not aware of any business that accepts Bitcoins in payments that also maintains its accounts in Bitcoin. The Policy Response Even though their prospects of replacing fiat money are tenuous at best, cryptocurrencies are of growing interest to policymakers, many of whom prefer to term them crypto-assets expressly because they are not true currencies—a convention I will adopt for the balance of my remarks. On the upside, as I will come onto in a moment, some of the underlying technologies are exciting.
As part of our Financial Sector Master Plan, we have implemented a 10-year programme to increase consumers' financial literacy. We are now in the third year of the programme. The effective participation by the public in the financial system needs to be an informed participation. There needs to be better understanding of the consumer's financial rights and responsibilities, the opportunities and the associated risks and costs. Bank Negara Malaysia LINK through its exhibitions, interactive information kiosks and booklets, will serve as a channel to provide consumer financial education to the public. In this connection, Bank Negara Malaysia LINK will provide information relating to conventional and Islamic banking, insurance and takaful, SMEs, foreign exchange administration, Central Credit Reference Information System (CCRIS), Biro Maklumat Cek, development financial institutions, and other financing related matters. Bank Negara Malaysia LINK would also attend to public complaints on the above matters. As part of efforts to preserve the history on Bank Negara Malaysia's role in nation building, Bank Negara Malaysia LINK also includes a section on the Bank's contribution in shaping the country's economy and financial sector since the 1950s. Ladies and Gentlemen, The establishment of Bank Negara Malaysia LINK takes the Central Bank's public outreach programme to a higher level. By providing a centralised platform for the public to seek information and address financial issues, it is our hope that Bank Negara Malaysia LINK will be instrumental in building bridges between consumers, including SMEs, the financial business community, consumer associations and policymakers.