According to CNBC, the United Kingdom will introduce specific laws to regulate the cryptocurrency industry within the next 12 months.
Specific cryptocurrency regulations could come into effect within a year, Andrew Griffith, the U.K. finance minister, said in an interview on Monday.
As for how the UK will regulate cryptocurrencies, Andrew Griffith said that the ideal situation is to introduce some applicable new regulations under the framework of existing regulations. He pointed out:
We want the same assets, the same transactions to be regulated in the same way. But in the field of encrypted assets, decentralized ledgers, we also see some additional development opportunities, and we hope to make full use of this.
The U.K. government published its cryptocurrency regulation proposals in February and invited public input, with a consultation period set to expire on April 30.
At that time, the British government made it clear that it would manage important encrypted asset activities, including exchange activities, custody activities, and lending activities, which would be included in the scope of financial services regulation. The proposal listed design priorities for each activity, such as prudential requirements, data reporting, consumer protection, location policy, and operational resilience.
In addition, the consultation proposal also proposes corresponding systems for a series of cross-field issues such as encrypted asset activities and business models, such as market abuse, encrypted asset issuance, and information disclosure.
The consultation proposal also calls for more responsibilities on cryptocurrency exchanges, such as defining and detailing the detailed content requirements for adding licenses and disclosure documents.
Former U.K. finance minister and current U.K. prime minister Rishi Sunak has taken an open stance on cryptocurrencies, saying in the past that the goal is for the U.K. to become a “global center for cryptoasset technology.”
