Bank accounts could become unnecessary within the next decade because central banks will create digital currencies and allow customers to hold deposits directly with them, predicts Greg Medcraft, chairman of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

The issuance by central banks of digital versions of their fiat currencies onto distributed ledgers would lead to widespread disaggregation for commercial banks, which would be forced to fight much harder to attract funding alongside market-based funds in a radical upheaval of financial markets.