The past few years have seen the continuous rise of cryptocurrencies, their use, and how we can actually spend them, turning a “pie in the sky” concept into something far more concrete. Countries around the world are starting to wake up to the true potential of cryptocurrencies — none more so than the United Kingdom. As a Brit myself, I shall be taking a look at how my native country aims to transform in the wake of the FinTech revolution and whether London, the financial capital of the world, is ready to hoist the flag and make Britain a crypto force to be reckoned with.
Britain’s very “British” stance
Tradition. Just one word evokes so many emotions. What are we without them? Where would Britain be if it weren’t for the pomp and pageantry enshrined in everything we do? Take a walk around central London and you’ll be confronted with centuries-old buildings dwarfed by mammoth structures of glass and steel. This juxtaposition perfectly represents 21st century Britain. Trailblazing and revolutionary thinking has come to define the City of London and see it transform into one of the world’s financial centers. Speaking at a news conference in May 2021, Bank of England Governor, Andrew Bailey, pretty much summed up the government’s attitude to cryptocurrencies stating that they “have no intrinsic value.” The scathing attack didn’t stop there as Bailey followed up his comments with “Buy them only if you’re prepared to lose all your money.” Call me skeptical, but this doesn’t sound like the most “crypto-friendly” comment. It’s not hard to see why investors would choose sunny Dubai over rainy London, especially if that’s the approach coming from the Bank of England itself. Yet, staunchness, level-headedness, and order, which represent all the characteristics we’ve come to know Brits for (albeit stereotypical), could be the very things holding them back. You see, the crypto world is vast. The whole concept is freedom, transparency, and security. Bold concepts like this can’t simply be tamed. Therefore, governments that have taken hardline approaches to the use and circulation of cryptocurrencies have painted a picture of crime, instability, and foolishness. That is until it comes to taxes! The global cryptocurrency market is valued at around $3 trillion. This astronomical sum has seen businesses take off, profits soar, and a lot of people become very, very rich. But of course, if you take a disparaging stance and bring the very existence of such currencies into question you find yourself out of the party and looking in from the street. More to the point, it would be pretty hard to find a convincing argument and to suddenly start reaping the rewards in the form of taxes from something, which “doesn’t exist.”
What changed?
To understand what really changed, let’s just take a quick walk down memory lane. “Global Britain, open for business” was the phrase of the day as the UK government boldly set out its post-Brexit plans upon leaving the European Union. However, the sheer chaos that ensued following the UK’s EU departure, combined with the haphazard response to the COVID pandemic, plus the government’s rather pessimistic view, (until only recently), of cryptocurrencies, gives us a pretty clear understanding of why budding crypto developers and investors aren’t queuing up to get a piece of the action in the UK. The point is, with so much choice out there where countries are reconstructing their economies and the way they operate to attract crypto investments, what does the UK have to offer? Crypto-friendly countries stand to make a killing where other governments miss out due to tensions among the ranks or out of sheer hesitancy. Unfortunately, in this case, it would seem that Great Britain comes across as, mm, well, Britain – at least to investors.
Has the UK Missed the Boat?
Not by a long shot. We are still in the very early stages of cryptocurrencies. The current shock we’re seeing in the market is a golden opportunity for the UK to make headway with their proposed changes to crypto regulation. While politicians seem divided over which path to take, a survey has revealed that a third of Brits have bought cryptocurrency. More to the point, the number of people who’ve purchased cryptocurrency has increased by 103% since 2018. This figure shows the country is poised to move things to the next level despite all the groans and grumbles coming from certain members of the public, especially when the 2018 figure stood at just 3%! PM Boris Johnson, despite his many faults, has “rallied the troops” and is set on making Britain an international crypto hub throwing everything but the kitchen sink into the equation. Unfortunately, nothing quite says “Britishness” than red tape. For anyone who’s not an EU citizen, the right to work is an obstacle that could put many potential investors off the U.K. A Skilled Worker visa would be the most straightforward approach to obtaining the right to work, yet that isn’t without its hurdles and obstacles.
“Make Britain Great Again!”
So, how’s Britain going to turn things around?
In early April, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced on Twitter “We’re working to make the UK a global cryptoassets hub. We want to see the businesses of tomorrow, and the jobs they create, here in the UK.” Of course, when you say you want to make your country into the world’s financial crypto hub, you could find you have bitten off more than you can chew. Government officials aim to start with baby steps – education. Once people have come to terms with the technology, you can start to bring policymakers and industry leaders together. This is a vital stage as this is where laws will be made to regulate the industry. It is a perfect opportunity to shape the UK’s future in a very literal sense. Get it wrong and you’ll see investors flee like vampires before garlic (i.e., Singapore and its new regulatory laws, which have seen businesses shut up shop and move over to Dubai). Get it right and you’ll see the country transform before your very eyes. Sitting right between North America and Europe, with its vast network of flight routes and already very well-developed infrastructure, plus London already being the world’s financial center, the UK has all the parts to make it the next global crypto hub – it’s just a question of how it puts all those pieces together. The UK can learn a lot from other countries’ hits and misses and navigate its way to success.
All Systems Go
And with that, the regulation of some cryptocurrencies will go ahead, such as Tether and Binance USD, plus the Treasury is to ask The Royal Mint to create an NFT this summer. The Queen’s Speech, one of the most important events in British politics, left many feeling left in the dark. In typical British style, nothing is as it seems on the surface, one must delve into the details to get a clearer picture. As the Queen’s Speech is time-limited, we head over to the “Lobby Notes” for a closer inspection of the government’s plans to find some nuggets including “Cutting red tape in the financial sector to make the UK an even more attractive place to invest and do business, while making sure that high standards are maintained.” The second point that really got heads turning was “Harnessing the opportunities of innovative technologies in financial services, including supporting the safe adoption of cryptocurrencies and resilient outsourcing to technology providers.” We’ve seen with many countries around the world that as soon as governments start to take crypto seriously, the market opens up and changes before our eyes. The fact these points made the cut and were on the agenda just goes to show that gears are starting to turn — just how quickly, only time will tell. The plan is simple then: make the UK an attractive place for crypto and watch the investments come, see jobs generated, and let the good times roll. Speaking to the Financial Times, SNP MP Liza Cameron, who’ll be chairing the Crypto and Digital Assets Group stated “We are at a crucial time for the sector as global policymakers are also now reviewing their approach to crypto and how it should be regulated.” The timeline for such grandiose plans stands at between 6 months and 1 year. Although, bureaucracy can be painfully slow, therefore, we wait in anticipation. However, as far as things stand, the forecast looks promising!
With such huge steps being taken, the ground is fertile for investors to grab a piece of the action. The Betting on Sports Europe 2022 event will be taking place June 7-9 2022 in London with CoinsPaid Media participating alongside some very interesting speakers. We could view this as the physical embodiment of the UK’s future plans and a crucial moment to get involved!
