Regulation
UK plans stablecoin and crypto staking legislation for summer
The UK government is reportedly preparing legislation relating to the staking, trading and custody of stablecoins and cryptocurrencies.
“We are now working at a sustained pace to present the legislation put in place our final proposals for our regime,” said the economic secretary Bim Afolamiwhose comments on Monday April 15 at the Innovate Finance Global Summit were reported by CoinDesk.
“Once this is up and running, a whole host of activities related to crypto assets, including operating an exchange, custody of client assets and other things, will come within the regulatory scope for the first time “, did he declare.
This could happen by June or July, the report added.
The British government announced in October its intention to bring stablecoins backed by fiat currencies under the supervision of bank of england, Financial Conduct Authority And Payment systems regulator.
This “will aim to minimize the risk of harm to customers and mitigate the conduct, prudential and financial stability risks arising from these stablecoins, particularly when used for payments,” the government said in its announcement .
The UK Treasury has published its proposed rules for crypto industry last February, saying it would subject digital asset companies to the same regulation as traditional financial companies. The government has attempted to balance the need to regulate the crypto sector while continuing to make Britain a global hub for cryptocurrencies.
“Our robust approach to regulation mitigates the most significant risks, while harnessing the benefits of crypto technologies,” Treasury said in its statement. “This allows a new and exciting sector to thrive and grow safely, boosting jobs and investment. »
Meanwhile, the crypto sector remains largely unregulated, according to a recent Financial Action Task Force (FATF) report showing that less than 30% of global jurisdictions regulate the industry.
“I would describe virtual assets as being akin to water, and essentially they will be funneled into less regulated jurisdictions.” T.Raja Kumar, head of the FATF, told CoinDesk last month. “Criminals and terrorists are very quick to spot opportunities leading to regulatory arbitrage. We simply cannot allow this. Every link in the global chain must be strong. This is not a trivial matter.
Last month, a report from the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) showed that Americans filed more than 43,000 complaints about cryptocurrency scams in 2023, with losses due to crypto-based frauds and scams reaching $3.9 billion. an increase of 53% Year after year.
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