The recent reports regarding the crypto situation in the UK indicate that the country’s government has yet to make a formal assessment of potential consequences of the changes in the value of numerous cryptocurrencies.
The Consequences of Crypto Price Swings Have yet to Be Determined
As cryptocurrencies continue to expand and conquer the world of finances, numerous countries’ governments are questioning the influence of the new technology. The UK is no different, and the question of what consequences digital currencies might have on certain sectors of the economy remains open for debate.
However, the last few weeks have seen significant swings in the prices of many cryptos, usually led by Bitcoin (BTC) itself. Because of this, Warwick’s Lord Taylor asked for the Government’s assessment of the new reports regarding the crypto situation in the UK. Lord Taylor wanted to know what potential effects these events might have on the blockchain industry in the UK according to reports.
However, the answer provided by the Department for International Development’s Minister of State, Lord Bates, did not exactly answer this. According to Lord Bates, The Government has yet to make any sort of formal assessment of the implications that the value swings might have in the UK. Even so, Lord Bates reassures that the Government is, and will continue to, closely track all crypto-related developments.
Lord Bates also took the opportunity to remind everyone that the Cryptoassets Taskforce was launched in March. The Taskforce consists of the Bank of England, HM Treasury, as well as the Financial Conduct Authority. Its goal is considering various potential benefits and risks regarding the crypto assets and blockchain technology. Additionally, they are also tasked with making assessments regarding what possible regulation is needed to respond to the new crypto-related situation. As such, the report will come from them sometime in the Autumn.
UK Has No Plans to Regulate, Launch, or Adopt Cryptos
Additionally, less than a week earlier, HM Treasury’s Economic Secretary, John Glen, stated that the launcher of the Taskforce, Chancellor of the Exchequer, did not have a formal discussion regarding the new crypto situation with the Bank of England. He also stated that the Bank of England has no official plans to make a new bank-backed cryptocurrency. Even so, the Bank did research the topic, as well as any potential implications of actually launching one.
Glen answered similar questions back in March of this year. On that occasion, he stated that the UK government has no plans to actually recognize cryptos as a legal tender. Furthermore, the government is also not planning to make them official financial instruments.
Still, the country recognizes that cryptocurrencies are rising and expanding. Because of this, the UK Treasury Committee decided to open a new inquiry into this technology back in February of this year. The goal was to explore the potential roles of cryptos within the UK. This includes all potential risks and opportunities for businesses, consumers, as well as the government itself. The potential impact of distributed ledger technology, or DTL, was also to be examined. The blockchain technology has started changing the world, and the UK government wanted to know its potentials as well.
As of yet, the UK has no official regulation regarding cryptocurrencies, apart of that regarding certain products that are related to them. Whether such regulations will arrive in the near future is anyone’s guess, but so far, the UK doesn’t appear to be all too concerned about them.
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